


Thunder (Old and Unfinished)

by Cheeky_Cheelai



Category: Doki Doki Literature Club! (Visual Novel)
Genre: Cutesy Stuff I Guess?, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Implied Sexual Content, Major Character Injury, Mild Gore, Mild Sexual Content, Minor Character Death, NON-CANON TO SNOW, No pornography only brief moments of gruesomeness, This Fic Was Made By An Edgy Weeb Tomboy Exposed To Too Much Action Anime, references
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-12
Updated: 2019-01-30
Packaged: 2019-06-26 05:37:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 26,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15656847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cheeky_Cheelai/pseuds/Cheeky_Cheelai
Summary: What's the point of living a life full of regrets?What purpose does reality serve?How is it so difficult to be alone and die alone?What is the ultimate sin?These questions are constantly, unknowingly surrounding the minds of four particular girls, each of them with their own quirks, their own beliefs, and their own perspectives on life.Each of them are all grown up.Fully aware of their surroundings.However, there is one thing they were never aware of until now:The ambitions of an old friend.





	1. Prologue (Beginning of Indigo Arc)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rumbellestiltskin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rumbellestiltskin/gifts).
  * Inspired by [Snow](https://archiveofourown.org/works/13545471) by [Rumbellestiltskin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rumbellestiltskin/pseuds/Rumbellestiltskin). 



> (This is a NON-CANON continuation of Rumbellestiltskin's "Snow Verse" series. If you have not read "Snow" or "Before The (Snow) Storm, do not read this fanfic until you've finished that fanfic if you want to understand what's going on)
> 
> This is the very first fanfic I have ever made. If you enjoyed it, leave a comment and a kudos. If not, please enlighten me on how I can be better. I'm willing to take any and every kind of constructive criticism, but I will not tolerate any haters. Got it? 
> 
> Also, please don't expect me to update often, as I'm trying to do PRODUCTIVE things with my life instead of boring myself to death on my couch. With all of that said, enjoy this if you can!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This entire story takes place 1 year after the events of Snow, in which the Doki's have attended and passed their first year of College. (Keep this in mind)

The girl turned the radio on in her car, switching it to a pop song station. The air conditioning wasn't working properly at the time, so she had to lower her window and let the wind blow her unbounded strawberry-pink hair around.

 _I should get that fixed_ , she told herself.

Life has become both significantly easier and more difficult ever since she and her girlfriend hooked up. She could never forget the day in which they had their first kiss on the kitchen floor.

And all because she slipped and fell when they were making cupcakes for the literature club's annual festival.

She licked her lips as she recalled the sweet taste of buttercream and the elegant scent of jasmine oils that made her body feel hot and heavy as the girl on top of her toyed with her skin.

As she pulled into her girlfriend's house, she could see the heavenly figure in the window waiting patiently while reading her favorite book. She playfully honked her horn, startling the poor thing in the process. "I'm here!" Natsuki shouted, bursting with laughter. The woman stood up, grabbed her purse, and opened the front door.

What Natsuki saw exiting the facility nearly made her jaw drop.

Yuri was wearing a black gothic dress with a small red rose attached to her torso and an amethyst pendant around her neck. Not something you would usually wear to a wedding, but the pinkie had no complaints. As soon as she entered the passenger seat, Natsuki was contemplating in her head, _Lordy-Lou, I'll never understand why she's so much sexier up close._

She suddenly had another flashback. This one reminded her of how much she resented the angel descended from heaven.

The more she pondered about how they fell in love with each other, the more it sounded like something from those cheesy mangas she used to read when she was younger.

"Please don't do that again," Yuri said, snapping Natsuki back into reality. "Sorry," said the tomato faced driver. "Well, shall we?" Yuri nodded approvingly. The pinkie's eyes got stuck again. Goddamnit.

She could hardly stand these cravings that popped up whenever she saw her smart, beautiful girlfriend. What made **this**  specific urge so hard to suppress was the fact that Yuri was wearing such an attractive dress. Not that she had a fetish for those sorts of things, ew, no. She just adored how Yuri was able to change her life in such a harmless manner.

That's what made Natsuki fall in love with her in the first place; a stubborn resentment that became an interest in her diversity, which grew over time and became a crush. That crush would soon become true, undying love. The pinkette could feel a rush of ambition flowing throughout her body. Yuri was sitting so closely to her. Her looks, her charisma, her soft touch... Ah! It drove her wild! This time was even better! She was able to suppress the aforementioned urges many times beforehand, but...

She couldn't help herself now. "Sorry, babe," she said, foreshadowing what happened next. She tilted Yuri's chin with her right hand and lunged in for those luscious lips of hers. "You know how hard it is to resist your smart, sexy body." Her lips met the jasmine's.

Hell. Yes. Yuri was surprised. They didn't have time for this. Why now? They had shit to do. Yet, she let her right hand rest on the pinkie's head while her left was wrapped around the waist, tugging on her crimson attire.

Natsuki bit the jasmine's lower lip and earned herself a gasp of satisfaction. Both girls' hair gently fluttered as the wind outside picked up and blew into Nat's car. This felt so fucking good, even if it was just their lips locking. It actually hurt. Mainly because of how nostalgic it felt as well.

Natsuki didn't really like nostalgia that much. However, she only didn't like it for one reason and nothing else: for making her want to be young again.

Why couldn't she just move on with her life? She cherished the memories of the past with utmost passion, but every time she did, she was also reminded of all the tedious hardships she came across on her little escapade with the jasmine. Like her drunken Father. Thank God Yuri was there to save her from that prick.

No, 'prick' was a word too strong. He deserved less. Perhaps 'poor' or 'misguided' would be more accurate terms to use. Especially since his wife's heart-shattering farewell. That hit him harder that a thousand bullets shot through the heart at point blank range. Natsuki wished oh-so-badly that things were different. That her Mother was still alive and kicking, and her Father could be the same amazing Papa he originally was for several years.

Regardless, Yuri was there to help when she needed it. She saved her from a traumatic experience. Thus, amplifying her affection and feelings of indebtedness.

Sadly, as Natsuki's thoughts raced around like go-karts in her head, she had to pull herself away from Yuri. Her phone had just buzzed. It was a text message from... Monika. Fuck, she ruined the moment.

New Message(s):

_10:59 A.M. LoveForLIT--  Hey! Where u at? Show's about to start!_

Oh shit, they were late. Natsuki shifted gears and backed out of the driveway. Feeling rushed, she didn't even think to reply. Yuri didn't have to ask what was going on with Natsuki's distraught face showing obviously. She sighed, reminded by her own collection of memories.

"I'm sorry that you have to do this," Yuri said, ashamed of her recent accident. "Don't be," Natsuki exclaimed. "It's not your fault you got t-boned."

She remembered the absolute terror she felt when she first heard the news about her girlfriend nearly dying because of some drunk, lonely man on a road rampage. The mere thought of it sent painful chills down her spine. Not as painful as the ones she received when Yuri almost blew up the science lab back in chemistry class at college, though.

_Ah, good times._

She shook her head, trying to stay focused on the task at hand. They were already running late.

Today, something big was going to happen.

Yes, today was the day in which their friends, Monika and Sayori, were finally getting married!


	2. You may now kiss the Bride

Monika shut her cell phone with a sigh. Hopefully, her friends received that message she sent regarding the time they where supposed to be there.  _What are those two doing at a time like this_ , she asked herself, her eyes moving from one cherry blossom tree to another. She sent that message at 10:59 A.M.. It was currently 11:04 A.M. and her friends said they would be there at 11:10. She leaned back against her chair as the warm summer air blew across her face. Her bride watched her as the scent of perfume and men's cologne filled the already heavy atmosphere.

She walked up behind the brunette with a minuscule smile and hugged her tightly before nuzzling against her neck. Monika bit her lip, emitting a mew of surprise. "Is everything alright," Sayori asked. "You don't look all that happy right now." Monika gazed into the sea-blue eyes of her lover. She was wearing a pure-white dress that bounced off light like a mirror. She honestly didn't know what to say. She didn't want her soon-to-be wife to feel guilty just because the other half of their group was running late. 

She looked down at her own dress and sighed heavily. Out of all the predicaments they've been through in the past, this was something they definitely weren't ready for. Not mentally, at least. "I don't know," she replied with a frown. "I just feel nervous. That's all." Sayori nodded. She also felt rather uneasy about this whole scenario, so she understood her bride's fear. But now wasn't the time for such unnecessary thoughts.

_Focus on her, you dingus!_

Sayori turned Monika's face so that it would meet her's. "Come on, darling," she said quietly. "Look at me in the eyes and give me an honest smile." Monika blinked before giving her idol a warm and sweet smile. Then came the cherry blossom petals as they flew around her freely.

Sayori wanted to kiss her so badly after seeing that. She leaned forward a few centimeters before Monika stopped her by putting her index finger on Sayori's lips. "Save it for the big moment, silly!" Sayori blushed madly before apologizing.

Then the music began.

**_Holy shit! It's finally time!_ **

Everyone seated themselves and waited patiently for the show to start. Then Monika heard a car horn in the distance. She recognized that horn.

_It's about time they showed up._

Natsuki and Yuri jumped out of the car and raced towards the setup with their phones out ready to stream the whole thing. "We got your message," shouted the pinkette. "Sorry about being late!" Sayori waved at them with a very happy expression. Monika smiled at her bride's cheerfulness.

As they walked down the red carpet with the bouquet of white roses in Monika's hands, it suddenly felt like they were strolling down memory lane. Monika shivered as she recollected how her crush nearly killed herself. The horror she felt on that day was so immense, she could hardly speak for three days straight afterwards. Still, Monika found it _slightly_ amusing how Sayori found a way to sneak-attack her, planting a firm smooch on her lips while she was doing CPR. Sayori was the only one who did notice her shaking since their arms were firmly locked with each other.

_Everything will be alright, sweetie._

_I know. I'm just getting flashbacks from... you know._

Sayori pondered for a moment before realizing what she meant.

_Don't be! I'm the one who acted like a selfish dummy! This is a giant step we're taking, so I can understand why you're feeling such things._

Monika barely nodded as they reached the preacher with the Holy Bible in hand at the end of the carpet. After a few minutes of listening to the speech before the pledging and family members shedding tears of joy, the man in robes finally got to the best part.

 

"Do you, Monika Amano,take Sayori to be your wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death parts you?"

"I do."

"And do you, Sayori Ozaki, take Monika to be your wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death parts you?"

"I do."

"Very well. You may now kiss the bride."

 

Sayori closed in on Monika's lips and the whole audience went wild. Monika had never felt so right in years. She tightened her grip on her wife's shoulders and returned the kiss as her heart soared sky-high, the astonishing taste of freshly picked peaches entering her mouth. Great, now she had to figure out what brand of lipstick her 'wife' used. Natsuki and Yuri whooped and cheered in the back row for the lucky pair as their tender embrace seemed inseparable. Sayori's hand slowly trailed up and down Monika's back, encouraging her to kick things up a notch. Monika unfortunately had to decline the cutie-pie's request, since they were out in public. She wasn't afraid of showing off. She just knew that there was a time and place for everything.

 

 

_Aww, you're no fun._

_Don't worry, I'll make up for this later._

_..._

_Are you thinking what I'm thinking?_

_Yeah. It's official._

_**Today is the best day of my life!** _


	3. Self-hatred sure is Bliss isn't it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. 3 chapters in 1 day! I certainly feel accomplished. Also, some of you might be asking, "HEY! Jalepeno-potato punk! What's with this 'Indigo' person? Is he just some bullshit OC you made?" Well, you'll have to give me some time. Gotta get that plot development, you know what I'm SAIYAN? This story is in fact based on him, but it's not all about him. He's just an old new character joining the club, if that makes sense.

_"You bitch! What did you do to me?!"_

_"I-I-I am so sorry! I overeacted! Please forgive me--"_

_"You just fucking stabbed me with a goddamn knife!! Give me one reason why I shouldn't sue you RIGHT NOW!!"_

_"You are the one who--"_

_"SHUT UP!! I'm gonna tell everyone I know about you unless you give me a reason not to!"_

_"U-uhh... er..."_

_"Oh that's right. You don't have a reason. You just like to cut things just like you do to yourself! You're an absolute psychopath!"_

_"Please... can we just talk this out?"_

_**"TALK IT OUT?!"** _

_"Please... forgive me..."_

_"You know what? Fuck this shit. I'm out."_

_"W-wait!"_

_"NO! I'm telling everyone about what you've done and there isn't a damn thing you can do to change my mind! Goodbye, freak..."_

_**"PLEASE, INDIGO!! I BEG OF YOU!!"** _

_____________________________

_____________________________

 

 

"Freak..." The word circled around his head for God knows how long nonstop. He had no idea that he could speak so lowly of others like that back then. He picked up his phone and looked through his old photos of him and his girlfriend. He felt a tear slowly falling from his left eye as he found his favorite.

It showed his lips locked with hers and her shy, yet adorable face that always brightened up his day whenever he was feeling down.

More teardrops plopped onto the sidewalk he was aimlessly traversing. His stomach turned when he saw the picture of his girlfriend in an adorable flower dress that dazzled in the sunshine.

 _What have I done?_ _Why am I such a prick!?_

He demanded an answer as he tightened the strings on his hoodie before clenching his fists so hard, you could hear the fierce crackling noises they made from an arm's length.

It's been four years since he abandoned his only ray of hope and started some of the most obnoxious rumors he had ever heard. He especially hated himself for running away to a different school after causing such a meaningless, idiotic uproar. He could still hear her desperate pleas as he walked through the front gates of Kinuta Park.

After waltzing hopelessly around the place for what seemed like an hour, he heard something in the distance; something that completely drowned out his inner thoughts. It sounded like a crowd cheering at a baseball game.

He looked up and to his right to find a large wedding setup in the forest of cherry blossom trees. He saw a bouquet of white roses being tossed into the air before falling back down.

A girl with strawberry-pink hair wearing a crimson dress caught it effortlessly before sassily walking up to whom he could only assume was her girlfriend and giving her a good smooch on the lips, which drove the audience even more crazy than before.

_Wait..._

The face of the receiver seemed awfully familiar to him.

_No way..._

He knew only one person that could possibly have such pristine purple hair.

_Finally... I've found you. After all this time, I've finally reunited with you._

_Please... accept the apology that I shall give you..._

_Yuri._


	4. Hello Darkness, my old friend...

"H-hey! No fair," Sayori shouted with a dab of cake frosting on the tip of her nose. "C'mon, Sayo! Let's have some fun!" Monika picked up a chunk of chocolate cake and targeted her wife's face, but Sayo wasn't going to fall for the same trick twice. She nimbly evaded the assault, scooped some cake, and smashed it against Monika's face, who screamed with laughter before retaliating.

By the end of their humorous squabbling, people were laughing and crying as they saw the two of them covered in chocolate cake from hair to chin. To them, it felt like watching one of those pie-in-the-face jokes at a circus. "Moniiiii, you ruined my ring," Sayori whined. "Sorry," her beloved one responded as she unknotted her tarnished hair bow. They cleaned themselves off with some wet napkins before sitting down at the banquet tables with everyone else.

As everyone passed around food and said their prayers, Monika noticed that Yuri was trembling slightly as if she afraid of something. "Are you okay, Yuri," she asked silently. The shaking lady calmed down as she looked at her. "I'm fine," she said. "I just feel like I'm being watched. It's probably just my head tricking me."

Monika grew more curious. "You think it's a stalker?" Yuri shook her head. "I honestly don't have the foggiest idea. I certainly hope it isn't a stalker." The brunette started to get worried herself.

Natsuki hugged her girlfriend's arm tightly. "Well, if that's the case, you can very sure that I'll protect you," she said with a confident expression. "That's what girlfriends are for, y'know?"

Yuri sighed. "I cannot lie, that sounds so..." Her voice trailed off for a second. "What's the word I'm looking for?" Natsuki swallowed the piece of cake she was chewing and tried to think of what Yuri was trying to say.

"Cheesy? Yeah, I know, I know." Yuri giggled cheekily.

Sayori looked up after finishing her piece of barbecue chicken. She noticed that the some of sauce was smudged onto both sides of her mouth. Then she had a funny idea. "Hey, guys! You wanna know how I got these scars," she asked in hopes of cheering up her concerned friends. The other three girls laughed at her ridiculousness.

As they did, however, Sayori noticed that a particular someone wasn't around. Monika's sister was nowhere to be seen. The Straw-blondy wondered how she could possibly miss such an important occasion. She knew the girl. She met her and the rest of the family when she slept over at Moni's last year. Really nice person.

"Where's your sister," she asked. Monika took a deep breath as her eye twitched.

"She had... business to attend to."

Ooh, ominous.

After dinner was finished, the crewmen set up the dance floor. It didn't take long for the married couple to step up when everything was complete. They slow danced gracefully under the sun's heat while listening to their favorite songs. They haven't had this much fun since that one time they played Street Fighter together when they were younger.

As everyone started to join, Monika had her own idea. "Hey, can we do some karaoke," she asked Sayori as she slipped into her embrace. The peach-blond girl agreed without question.

When the third song ended, the two girls sprung into action. They grabbed the microphone from its stand and let their voices do all the work as they circled each other, their lips in perfect sync.

Soon, the sun started to fade away and the moon rose without a sound to replace it. The setup was cleared and packed into the trucks and trailers parked near the front gates of the park. Everyone said goodbye to each other, got into their cars and drove away...

Except for a certain pair: Natsuki and Yuri.

 

"What are you planning," Natsuki asked. She didn't like the feeling of keeping secrets from Monika and Sayori on the night of their wedding.

"I'm not planning anything," Yuri said defensively. "I just feel like that person I mentioned before is... still watching us." Natsuki was starting to get annoyed by this prick.

Then they heard a sudden snapping sound, followed by a loud *crash*. They turned around only to find a branch surrounded by flying petals that fell from a tree. Then Yuri noticed something carved into the trunk... an arrow? Then she saw another one on the tree to the left. And another one to the right.

"H-Hey, Nat," she asked, her voice shaking a little. Natsuki could sense that her girlfriend was feeling uneasy. "What's wrong," she asked sincerely.

"Look at this..."

Natsuki stared at the arrow pointing to the zigzagging line of marked trees. Yuri rubbed her shoulders as her body felt internally cold. "I should've worn something with long sleeves," she muttered. Her sweetheart hugged her with one hand on her back and the other caressing her long lilac hair.

"Everything's gonna be fine, y'know. Don't you remember what I said earlier; I'll protect you. That's what girlfriends are for." Yuri winced as her cheeks started to burn.

"Well, shall we," Natsuki asked, excitement slowly bubbling within her. "Who ever this guy is, he needs to be taken care of. Right here, right now." She had a good point. Yuri agreed reluctantly and held her hand as they set off to find the answers to this mystery.

 

As they searched through the forest, they found more arrows carved into the trees telling them which way to go. "Are you sure this isn't a trap," Yuri asked, still unconvinced. Natsuki nodded. She firmly stood her ground.

"I'm positive," she answered with a serious tone in her voice.

_Thank god... wait a minute..._

Yuri started to have flashbacks of her own as she looked at the line of arrows. It all became clear to her now. She stepped forward with a more confident expression on her face.

"There's only one person I ever knew who did things like this." She picked up the pace as her hand's grip tightened around Natsuki's. They ran at full speed as they followed the arrows, twisting and turning countless times. Natsuki struggled to keep up with Yuri's physically superior body.

_For God's sake, why didn't this lunatic mark them in a damn straight line?_

Then Yuri stopped abruptly before Natsuki bumped into her.

"Ow! Why'd you stop--"

"Shh," Yuri insisted.

Silence dropped like thunder in the sky.

Natsuki shivered as she hugged her girlfriend's arm, her facial color quickly changing from bright red to pale-white. She heard the crunching of leaves and snapping of twigs as a shady figure approached them slowly.

"Who are you," She asked with a shaky voice, quivering uncontrollably. Why was she so ironically afraid?

_God damnit, Nat! You're such a pathetic hypocrite!_

The figure said nothing until he stopped when he was 5 feet away from them.

"So you're with Yuri now, huh? You must be very lucky to have such a pulchritudious lady, I swear." The figure stuck all of his pockets out and put his hands in the air to convince the two that he was unarmed. He used those hands to remove the deep-red hoodie concealing his head.

He had sleek black hair with small tints of brown at his hairline. His amber-yellow eyes sharpened like a falcon's pair does when hunting for prey. He reached for his lower rib as if he were in pain.

 

"Long time no see... Yuri."

"So you've finally come running back to me... Indigo. You haven't changed a bit, I see."

 

The man sighed, regret filling his lungs the second he breathed back in again.

 

"Yeah... Look, I'm not expecting you to forgive me for what I've done to you, but..."

"And how can I possibly trust you after all the--"

"Please, Yuri. I really am sorry for ratting you out like a treacherous jackass."

 

_Ratting her out?_

Natsuki stopped to get her thoughts together. What was this creepy-ass punk babbling about? How does Yuri know him?

She then recalled the time Yuri talked about having a jerk of a boyfriend back in high school.

_"H-he tried to have sex with me when I asked him not to so I..."_

_"...I stabbed him with the knife I always keep to defend myself."_

_"He started spreading false rumors about me across the school and I never saw or heard from him again s-since."_

Natsuki put the pieces floating in her head together until...

 

_No..._

_Oh fuck, no..._

_This can't possibly be him! What are the odds of this bullshit happening?!_

 

Natsuki grit her teeth and clenched her fists, her eyes flooding with pure malice.

_Is this man seriously showing his face to the woman he nearly broke?!_

 

**"YOU... SELFISH... VULGAR... ASSHOLE!!"**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nani?! What a plot twist! This chapter was TONS of fun to make. See, guys? I told you Indigo played an important role. At least, he should. Keep in mind, he's NOT the main character. Now, I'm going to be taking a quick and easy break from this. Don't worry, it'll only last 1 day. I promise! In any case, I'll see YOU... in the next chapter. BUH-BYE!!


	5. Midnight Mischief

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want you guys to know that I am feeling really guilty about not uploading anything for a while and suddenly saying that I'll actually do something every Sunday. However, I believe that it will give me the time I need to conjure up some original creativity. In any case, I am hoping that you will all enjoy this. I know this isn't the most famous fic out there, but I believe we can get there in a few years time.  
> So, let's get crack-a-lacking!

_Nothing else is important now. The only thing that matters now is vengeance for Yuri. How can you be her girlfriend if you can't contribute to her safety?_

Natsuki was filled with rage as she charged towards Indigo like an angry bull seeing a red cape. She balled up her fist and punched him with all of her strength square in the mouth. She was about to go for another one, but something didn't seem right to her. Why did he just stand there and take that? Normally, people would react to this and pull a quick and calculated reversal. As she cautiously backed away from Indigo, she saw him spit out what looked like a chip of a tooth.

_Did you just do that? Seriously, why didn't he react?_

Yuri grabbed her hand tightly and pleaded for her to stop while she could. "Please... settle down. He's not a threat!" Natsuki felt confused as all hell, her thoughts racing around her head like cars on the freeway. Why was Yuri wanting to help the man who made her life a pain in the ass? What's with this man that he let himself get decked? Nothing felt right all of a sudden. She did as Yuri asked of her and unclenched her blood pressured hands, albeit reluctantly. She took several deep breaths as Indigo got up off the dirt.

He smiled at Natsuki and laughed as he said, "Jesus, you really pack a lot of muscle! You have my respect!"

_Yep, definitely chipped his tooth._

Natsuki just stood there with her jaw almost dropping, amazed that she was just complimented instead of being pummeled into the ground. Still, she couldn't quite trust this guy. She felt her palms get clammy as distance between him and themselves shortened. Yuri wasn't feeling so good either. She was already sweating when she saw her ex boyfriend's face.

Natsuki forced herself to apologize for her "outrageous" behavior. She didn't really know why she had to. Indigo put his hand up. "No, no, you're fine. I actually needed that, y'know what I mean?"

_Okay...?_

Once again, Natsuki was stunned by this lunatic's unexpected kindness. Did he really change in a matter of years? No, that sounded too much like bullshit. Yuri seemed slightly more confident than she did since she knew him better. Indigo approached her slowly as the entertained expression he had before was replaced with seriousness.

"Look, Yuri, I am so sorry for hurting you so badly. I was drunk and I should've known better. Either way, I don't expect you to except my apology. All I want is for us to at least be friends again. Can we please forget the past and focus on the present and future?" He reached his hand out to shake Yuri's.

Yuri was taken aback. Neither she nor her girlfriend had expected such gentlemanly consideration. She was skeptical like Natsuki, but she knew Indigo was right about one thing. She couldn't change the past, but she could definitely afford for the future. So, she reached for Indigo's stretched arm and shook it firmly.

"Alright. But if you do anything harmful to me or my friends, mentally or physically--"

"I know... I know..."

Indigo's expression changed again. This time, he seemed rather unhappy about something. As he walked away, knowing his job was done, Natsuki put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey. All I'm gonna say is 'never do what you did before ever again, and we're cool'. Also, if you're gonna apologize to someone, don't creep them out in the process. Got it?" Indigo nodded, pulled out his iPod, put his earbuds on, and wondered off with his hands back in his pockets.

Yuri's legs suddenly gave out. Natsuki rushed to her aid. "Are you okay," she asked sincerely. Yuri nodded as cold sweats trickled down from her hairline. "I don't know. I'm just glad he's gone." Natsuki agreed. What a weird person Yuri had for an ex. The thought of it started to get to her as she began chuckling.

"What's with that guy," she asked. Yuri shook her head. They watched him listen to his music as he waltzed his way home.

"What a bizarre adventure we've had tonight," Natsuki said blankly. "First we're attending our friends' wedding, then we follow a zigzagging line of trees with arrows carved into them, and to top all of that we're talking to your freaking ex in the middle of the night!" Yuri looked at her with a smile on her face that was so small, it almost seemed fake. "Yes... Very bizarre indeed..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, unlike the other chapters from before, this one actually looks good in my opinion! This may be the first thing that I've ever written that didn't need any editing aside from spelling errors! Also, y'all might be curious about Indigo, right? Well, he's actually from Rumbellestiltskin's stories. I figured that I could do something with him. So, I gave him a name, his own personality, his reasons, and I even have him a goal to work towards which will be revealed in future chapters.  
> I love y'all and I hope y'all enjoyed this story so far and I shall see y'all next Sunday!  
> (that's a lotta y'alls)


	6. Boulevard of Broken Dreams

Indigo paced down the lit-up city streets of Tokyo as several amusing thoughts swirled around his mind like a whirlpool.

_Such a spunky person that pinky was._

Still, his frown remained unchanged on his face as he walked in a straight line pass everything the city had to offer, his iPod repeating songs by Coda. He saw a familiar snow-white taxi that was rocking and rolling slowly towards the sidewalk he was standing on.

"Hey, Ottis," shouted Indigo, waving his hand as he saw his Father's old American friend from the 90's in the driver's seat. The old man from Boston had dark skin and a gold tooth that shined like a diamond. "Aye, kiddo," he exclaimed. He held his fist out for a fist pump, which Indigo responded to with a minimal smirk. "How's the family," asked Indigo. "Dandy," the man replied with a toothy grin. "So, where to?" Indigo told him the same thing he did every day since the 'incident' that happened five years ago.

"You really wanna go tah dat place again, kid," he asked. "Dat place's prob'ly bound tah fall apart by now. You really do love yer Father."

"I must be committed to my daily routine, sir," said the passenger. It didn't too take long for them to exit the city from the northern end across the beautiful Rainbow Bridge. Indigo decided to doze off for a short while.

After a hot minute, they were on an empty dirt road with nothing in sight except for silhouetted trees. The driver stopped the car when they reached the destination, waking up Indigo in the process, and held his hand out for the yen. Indigo sleepily gave the man two hundred and climbed out, but not before telling the driver to keep the engine running as usual.

"I'll give ya the ride back fer free, y'hear?"

"Much obliged, sir."

Indy was tired beyond belief, but it didn't matter to him. All that did matter was completing his daily routine.

The antique facility he stood before was an old building covered in charcoal stains and ivy. Almost every window was shattered on both sides and the arch around the front doorway was missing half of its cobblestones. Indigo looked at the scratched up billboard next to it.

 

_Yokus io  Mu  cult ral  Chur h_

_Whe e  hu an  b ings  ca   Li e  and   est  In  Peac  as    Uni n_

 

"Do not worry, Father," Indigo mumbled. "I have not forgotten about you and I never will."

He opened the doors with a pen and pencil in his hands, ignoring the chipped signs and yellow caution tape that told him to turn back. He turned off his music as it was forbidden to play any form of entertainment while the people were singing. He was a rule follower when it came to this subject, regardless of the day and age it was.

The interior of the church looked even worse than the outside view. Planks of burnt wood were strewn about everywhere, a quarter of the seats were crushed by a fallen chandelier, and some of the stairs leading to the second floor were either missing or snapped in two on the floor. Indigo took those creaky stairs full of holes to the second floor. Suddenly, he heard a loud *snap* followed by a heavy *rumble*.

"NONONONONONONONONO--"

Indigo sprinted up the stairs as they began to collapse. The second he made it to the top, the stairs crumbled to pieces, leaving a large pile of dust and rubble at the bottom. Okay, not going that way again. He moved on and sat down at a wooden desk that was missing its fourth leg. "Is everything alright in there," shouted Ottis. "I'm fine," Indigo replied, panting and gasping for air.

_**Now is the time, you filthy sinner. Speak to your own father for once you lowlife failed creation of God.** _

_Not again..._

That voice echoed in Indigo's brain for years, constantly trying to convince him that he was full of shit. The worst part was the fact that it was right. It spoke the truth and nothing but the truth.

It annoyed the absolute shit out of him without mercy ever since that day... oh dear lord that horrific day. It made him quiver all over, which made his already wounded spine scream nothing but sharp pain. Then came the aching from the stab injury near his stomach Yuri gave him. He clenched every part of his body he could as the urge to vomit started to rapidly filling his insides.

_Ugh... such tedious things. O' Great Lord, please give me strength._

Indigo put his piece of paper on the desk, pulled out the pen, and scribbled furiously.

 

Hello, Dear Father.

I sincerely apologize for failing to utter a single word towards you.

I have no excuses for my sin.

Today is that day, if I am not mistaken.

The day when everything we cherished to our hearts content crumbled like a Christmas cookie.

I can still hear those bloodcurdling shrieks of helplessness. I am hurting everywhere from the inside out, Dear Father.

But it is all going to be okay. The pain will subside soon enough.

Just so you know, I am not asking for any form of assistance.

I only require your treasured wisdom. Your words have always taught me well in many departments. 

T'is a blessing, I say.

Oh the things I would give to hear them in person once more.

Your Son, Indigo

 

When he was finished, he found a ladder lying on the floor and used it to climb back down to ground level. It was slightly charred and missing a few bars, but it would suffice. The sounds it made as Indigo slowly moved towards the ground scared him a little.

_Please don't freaking break... Please don't freaking break..._

*SNAP*

"ShiiiiiiIIIIIIII--"

*THUMP*

Indigo groaned as he got up and surveyed his body, his spine aching and screaming pure unadulterated pain.

Good, he hasn't lost any limbs, nor was he impaled by a sharp stick of lumber. He exited the church through the back door and lit a small, yet beautiful campfire that glowed brighter and fiercer than a flashlight. He couldn't believe himself. Every square inch of his body felt like it was twisting and turning abnormally as he gazed into the flames. Why did he feel like such a whimp? It was just a little fire...

_Fire..._

_Fire..._

_FIRE!!_

The terrifying memories came back to haunt him. His body started to feel heavy as if it were crushed under a dozen pounds of wood and bricks. He pinched himself so that he could regain control over his body.

He held the paper in his hand as if he were holding a silver platter and gently blowed upon it. It fluttered around for a brief moment before casually landing in the fire, reducing it ash quickly. "Please hear my cry, Dear Father," He pleaded pathetically as the smoke rose to the heavens above where his father slept.

Then his phone started to buzz; Oh for the love of the man upstairs...

It was his Mother. How dare she interrupt his prayers for his Father. She was always committing such tedious acts ever since he was ten years old and it annoyed the piss out of him.

Today, however, he was willing to make an exception, considering he was standing next to the church his Father built. He did say he'd give anything to hear his Father's voice once more. He answered the call as he braced himself for a two-hour lecture about returning home before 10:00 P.M.

It was currently 9:49 P.M.

Another heavy sigh.

"Well... here goes," he muttered as he left walked back to the taxi with a mix between annoyance and anguish written all over everything from the waist up, his phone next to his ear.

"My greatest apologies, Dear Father, but I mustn't keep my Mother waiting... Yes, Mother?"


	7. Trautes Heim, Glück allein

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww hell yeah! Got 2 more kudos! In all honesty, I wasn't expecting to get a damn thing out of this but I did so anyway and I am felling good! Let's have some more fun, shall we?

If you were to enter to city of Tokyo via the northern Rainbow Bridge, the first thing you'd see --be it day or night-- would be a small, single-story house painted in neon green with a bright solar panel covered roof.

The front door had a bright yellow paintjob with a bronze doorknob marked with a big letter 'K'. This house could easily be spotted from halfway across the colorful Rainbow Bridge by almost anyone and Indigo was no exception.

Indigo spotted his house and groaned for what seemed like the fifteen-millionth time. Why did his house have to be so tediously irregular compared to the other houses that surrounded it? Still, he kept the question out of his head since he knew it sounded insulting.

Ottis parked in front of the house and let the youngster go before waved goodbye as he drove off. As Indigo looked at the front door, he sighed heavily.

Why did he feel so uneasy? He was just entering his home for the fifteen-millionth time. What made this time so damn special? Maybe it was because he was so concerned about what his Mother would say about being late for dinner.

Indigo breathed in deeply slowly opened the door, ready for that good ol' 4-hour lecture.

"Ich bin zuhause," (I'm home!) he said bravely.

"Hallo, Liebling! Wie war dein Spaziergang," (Hi, Sweetie! How was your walk?) his mother asked as she stood next to the kitchen stove whilst wearing her favorite apron that said in big pink letters, "Mama weiß immer, was das Beste ist!" (Mama always knows what's best!)

"Es war okay, ich denke... Tut mir leid, dass ich zu spät war." (It was okay, I guess... Sorry I took so long.)

"Nein, nein, dir geht es gut. Ist alles in Ordnung?" (No, no, you're fine. Is everything alright?)

 _Where's the speech,_ Indigo thought to himself. He stared off into space as he pondered over the past few hours.

"Ja..." (Yeah...)

His mother grew suspicious. "Behalt du etwas von mir?" (Are you keeping something from me?)

"Nien, nien, nien! Im Ernst, es geht mir gut, Mutter, " (No, no, no! Seriously, I'm fine, Mother!) Indigo insisted.

*Staaaaaaare*

That look in his Mother's eyes almost always forced him to shiver unconsciously. Such a serious woman she was! It terrified him.

"Nun, seit du hier bist," (Well, since you're here,) said his Mother as her faced changed from suspicion to sneakiness. "Ich mache dein Lieblingsgericht..." (I'm making your favorite dish...)

Indigo paused to think of what his mother meant by that. Then came the familiar scent that immediately had Indigo's mouth watering. No way...

Was she trying to make his family's **Legendary Zwiebelkuchen?!** There literally wasn't a single cook he knew or heard of who could top that shit! At least, not yet...

"Machst du, was ich denke, du machst," (Are you doing what I think you're doing?) Indigo asked, drooling with curiosity. His Mother nodded with a cheery face.

Now Indigo was excited. The crunchiness of the steamed onions and diced bacon, the richness of the cream, and the savory flavoring of caraway seeds baked in a pie dish blew his taste buds away 24/7. His family was widely known for their spectacular German cuisines. They even had a small, yet iconic and famous shop back in Germany called "Kapelle Schnitzels". Sadly, it was torn down due to a scandal that put them out of business. Still, it was an age to remember.

As Indigo's mother worked on the crust, Indigo spaced out again. He was still worried about his encounter with his ex girlfriend earlier tonight.

_Was I not good enough? Why did I think forcing things was a good idea back then?_

The voice came back into his mind and Indigo started to sweat.

_**Because you really can't do anything yourself, "Mr. Loner". You have to rely on your old woman to do literally everything for you!** _

 

Indigo tried his absolute damnest to keep his cool as he wiped his sweaty face. When his Mother put on the finishing touches to her culinary marvel, she brought the two plates over to the table, the strange, yet satisfying smell of Indigo's Mother's work calming him down quickly.

"Oh w-warum, danke, M-mutter," (Oh w-why, thank you, M-mother!) He stuttered, his sweat running cold as ice as the steam hit his face. This only made his Mother more worried for him as she heard him grunt with every exhalation of breath.

"Bist du sicher, dass es dir gut geht? Du siehst blass aus, als hättest du gerade einen Geist gesehen," (Are you sure you're okay? You look pale as if you just saw a ghost.) She said with a small hint of fear in her eyes. She was obviously afraid for her only son. Indigo just shrugged and said, "Wie ich dir sage, geht es mir gut." (As I keep telling you, I'm fine.) Then the Mother noticed something as Indigo took the first bite that made her face as pale as her son's. "Oh mein Gott, ist das ein abgebrochener Zahn?!" (Oh my god, is that a chipped tooth?!)

_Shitshitshitshitshitshitshit--_

Indigo completely forgot about that. His Mother was freaking the fuck out as she catapulted questions at him. Obviously, the first thing she asked was who the culprit was, but Indigo just said that he 'tripped over and smashed his mouth against a tree trunk'. He didn't think it was right to put the blame on someone for giving him what he deserved. His Mother somewhat believed it since Indigo had quite the history of accidentally breaking himself ever since that day when he came home with a massive stab wound on the left side of his ribs. However, the way she saw it, that didn't justify the shape of the chip. The Mother and her son continued to eat in awkward silence as the sky grew darker outside. When they were finished, they cleaned up their plates and silverware. After that, Indigo decided to look at the clock.

_11:00 P.M.? Damnit, Indy._

His Mother saw him staring at the hands. Her concern grew more and more as the days went by like seconds. This wasn't the cute, smartass Indigo Kappel she knew and loved. This Indigo seemed more doubtful and sarcastic than his usual self. Something definitely went wrong while he was out there. She wanted to help so badly, but she feared she might only anger him. So, she simply hugged him and said "Gute Nacht," (Goodnight) before walking to her bathroom to get ready for bed. Indigo did the same.

As he was brushing his teeth and washing his face, he felt his heart rise a little before dropping like a rock in the Bermuda Triangle. He looked in the mirror and saw himself. He didn't look any better either.

 _She's still scared of you after that whole act, you know,_ said the reflection with a passive-aggressive tone.

_I'm fully aware of that. The question is 'How am I supposed to apologize without frightening her more like I did at the park?'_

_You could just let her be and move on. She has someone else to rely on now._

Tears slowly built up in Indigo's eyes. He knew what was happening and he felt happy that his ex was able to find peace on her own. However, he knew that he had to persist and gain her trust again.

All that mattered to him in his life back then was success, regardless of the outcome. Nowadays, however, he seeked more than just peace. He was desperately searching for something or someone he could share it with.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Not with some stranger or some random relative of his family. He didn't even want a girlfriend or boyfriend. He just wanted someone that he actually knew.

_I can't stop now. You know it too. I need her... Not as a girlfriend, but a normal friend. Anything else would be crossing the line like I did before._

Indigo wiped the tears from his face. The man in the mirror sighed in defeat.

_Alright. Have it your way, then..._

And he faded away without another word. Indigo silenced his own thinking to see if it was really gone. "Finally some peace an--" He turned and started to move toward his bedroom to find some comfortable pajamas, only to feel his foot slip on some spilled mouth wash. He tried to grab onto something, but he just fell face first into the rock-solid tiles.

*THWACK*

_Did something just break? I felt something break..._

He felt around his face until he reached his bleeding nose and yelled in pain.

"SCHEISSE!! MUTTER!" (SHIT!! MOTHER!)


	8. Regretful Memory Lane

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, from here on out, the plot is finally going to be put into action. The previous chapters were nothing more than random antics with the Dokis meant to get you guys comfortable with the story. Now, we can get more seriousness in this thing!

"Jesus Christ, can this light _please_ turn green?"

It was really late; 11:03 to be exact. Natsuki was feeling exhausted from tonight's adventure and Yuri was feeling rather tired, too. They were driving home from Kinuta Park where their friends' wedding was held. Yuri squeezed her lover's arm. "Are you okay," she asked. Natsuki didn't answer, she just stared blankly at the passing cars and trucks. Yuri asked again, but with more concern filling her stomach. "Natsuki...?"

The pinkette shook her head and turned to face the woman sitting next to her. "Sorry... I'm fine." She looked back at the light as its color changed from crimson to emerald. That answer didn't sound 'fine'. This made Yuri curious as to what the driver was was pondering about. She carefully nudged her as she questioned, "Is something on your mind that's making you uncomfortable?" Natsuki had to be honest with her. "Well... it's just... I'm just so confused by today's transition between events." Understandable.

"The feeling's mutual," said Yuri as she sighed. Running around in a cherry blossom forest following arrows carved into said trees just to find a ghost from the past did seem rather strange when you think about it. Especially since it happened after a wedding.

As they finally pulled into Yuri's house, Natsuki's phone buzzed. She flipped it out to see what was going on. It was a text message from... Sayori? What the absolute hell was she doing at this time of night? It was now 11:15 for fuck's sake.

 

New Message(s):

_11:15 p.m. lilmonix3--_

_Moni and I figured we could have some special breakfast to celebrate our success. Care to join us tomorrow? For old time's sake?_

 

Natsuki was amazed that they were still using those adorable, cheesy nicknames for group-chat texting. However, tomorrow was a Sunday and she couldn't think of anything more fun to do. So, she asked Yuri, who replied with an immediate "Yes!" without a second thought.

 

_11:16 p.m. sugar^and^spice-- Sure why not?_

_11:16 p.m. lilmonix3-- Thnx! How does 9:30 sound?_

_11:17 p.m. sugar^and^spice-- Eh a little early_

_11:17 p.m. lilmonix3-- 9:35?_

_11:17 p.m. sugar^and^spice-- lol still no_

_11:17 p.m. lilmonix3-- 10:45...?_

_11:18 p.m. sugar^and^spice-- Better_

_11:18 p.m. lilmonix3-- It's settled then! Meet us at the Suke6 Diner!_

 

"Suke6 Diner," exclaimed Yuri. "I've been there before! It's so cute and... quaint..." The lilac haired beauty's voice trailed off for a moment, concerning the pinkie a little. Just what was on her mind? Either way, if Yuri loved this place, then Natsuki was certain that she would as well. "All right then! See you tomorrow," she said before kissing her girlfriend goodbye, almost instantly forgetting her previous thoughts. She shifted gears after watching the woman with elegantly long, violet hair unlock her front door and proceed to enter. Then, she stopped.

She hasn't spent the night with her girlfriend in a long time. Not since her job was so far away. Tomorrow was a Sunday. She could sleep with her tonight. So, she took the keys out of the ignition, nearly jumped out of her car and ran towards the door. She gently knocked and waited for a response. After a few seconds, Yuri opened the door with a worried look. Her coat was already taken off and hung up on the rack. "Something wrong?" "H-hey," Natsuki stuttered. "Can I sleep with you tonight?"

Ugh, that sounded so cringeworthy. She couldn't believe herself.

Yuri, however, didn't have a problem with that and let Natsuki inside. Just in the nick of time, too. Rain clouds gathered in the starlit sky and the weather quickly began to pour down hard outside. "Jesus, Zeus is pissed off today, huh," Natsuki wondered.

Yuri was easily humored by the younger one's silliness before her smile disappeared once again. That right there proved that something wasn't right.

As the pair were getting themselves ready for bed, an unanswered question floated around Natsuki's head again: 'What was on Yuri's mind?'

It was probably something regarding that weirdo from the park, but she wasn't 100% sure. She decided to ask Yuri as she was gargling mouth wash fluid.

"Is everything alright, sweetie," she asked sincerely. "You seem more distant than usual." Yuri didn't say a word until she spat out her first batch. "I'm fine, sweetie," she replied as she sipped another pint of mouth wash.

Now the younger one felt the need to persist. She knew something was wrong. She just _had_  to know what it was. Okay, here goes nothing...!

 

"Hey... I-I'm sorry if this seems personal, but... what was --fuck, what was his name-- Indigo like?"

 

Yuri harshly spat out her second pint into the sink like a shotgun, startling her girlfriend. The sound of thunder outside shook the entire complex as she turned around to face the confused pinkette behind her, eyes wide open and sharp as a knife.

 

"Why do you want to know?"

 

_Bad move! VERY bad move!_

"I'm sorry," Natsuki exclaimed, guilt coursing through her veins. "I was just curious!" Yuri sighed heavily amongst her girlfriend's reasoning.

Then again, that's exactly why she had to answer; because they were girlfriends. For over a year, to be accurate.

They swore to tell each other everything back in college and there was no point in breaking that promise. Not now or ever. So, Yuri decided to confess. It was much better than feeling guilty about leaving the pinkette in the dark anyway. "Okay. I'll tell you. Just let me finish up here, please." Natsuki nodded and went of to change into some pajamas.

After Yuri had finished washing her face, she searched through the closet to find her own pair of sleeping pants and took off her undershirt. She went to her bedroom to find her girlfriend sitting patiently on the bed. "I'm sorry," she repeated. "It's fine," Yuri replied. "I just wasn't expecting you to be interested in such a trivial topic." Natsuki was thinking the same thing. She didn't really believe the whole 'change of heart' thing.

"Well, it's better this way. I'm going to tell you every single detail, okay? I'm not leaving anything out... okay, maybe a few unnecessary details, but I forbid you to say a damn word about this to the others nonetheless. Are we clear?"

That may not have seemed like fair rule, but Natsuki was willing to do what it takes to know how to protect herself and her girlfriend. She knew that Yuri was more willing to trust that man, but she also knew that they were both equally skeptical about this whole scenario.

"Crystal."

"Good."

"Consider this as one of those therapy sessions you had back then," Natsuki said, snickering. This made Yuri feel better about telling her as she laughed at the pinky's remark.

 

Now, this is the story Yuri told her.

 

* * *

 

(YURI IS NARRATING HERE)

 

 

It was four years ago, back in High School. I was still the same old junior student who was easily embarrassed and tended to blush quickly whenever the person I like compliments me. It was a Friday afternoon on December 1st, 2014.

I was walking home from school one day, when I saw an arrow carved into the small cherry blossom tree that sat next to the fountain at the very center of the school. I looked to where it was pointing at and I saw another arrow. This time, it was a tree pointing to the very front of the school. I walked in that direction. And this path carried on and on and on. I thought that it was never going to end as it guided me throughout half of the whole city. That is, until I finally found the tree that led to the front gates of his very own house. His parents where away for the month due to a few issues that had to be resolved elsewhere. I'm not sure myself, but I imagine it was something important.

I was obviously afraid of what would happen if I were to set one foot in that place, but I decided to let go of my cowardice and shyness and knock on the door. That would be the biggest mistake of my life. He answered it with a smug look on his face. I was absolutely terrified of his presence alone. His amber eyes were reminiscent of a falcon's and his hair was actually dyed sky-blue back then. He was rather welcoming, though. He was very well mannered, and he asked what I would like for him to do. I just told him that I didn't need anything aside from answers as to why he went through such trouble to mark all of those trees. He told me right off the bat that he was... interested in me, to be brief. At least he was honest about it, which I couldn't really get mad about. Either way, I accepted these feelings because he seemed like a nice person. And so, we became a couple with a somewhat healthy relationship.

We talked a little, got to know each other, had some fun watching movies and television shows, ate dinner together, etcetera. We said our goodbyes and, believe it or not, I was sad that I had to leave. We hung out for a few months during the year and we were actually making progress. But, that would change as his motives were quickly altered after the school year ended.

He started to pay more attention to the vulgarities of life and became more interested in sex as I constantly saw him checking out women's magazines whenever we went to find books at the city library. This scared me a little, as I was still that shy bookworm who always got flustered easily. As time flew by, he changed more and more and he even had the nerve to ask me to bend over and choke on his... ugh! It was so disgusting and horrible! It was like he lost all of his decency and virginity. Sometimes, he even bought drinks at the bar and came back to me, wasted with a sexual joke in mind. And no, he didn't really need to worry about age requirements because he was eighteen. I, on the other hand, was seventeen.

Then, it happened.

On January 12th, 2015, he came to my house, more  drunken than ever before. I was shocked that he was still able to move, in all honesty. Normally, his brain would be reduced to tar. He was a persistent one, which only made things worse. He forced me into my bedroom, shredded my clothes, and... well, I stabbed him with my knife to defend myself from sexual assault... and abuse, which led to the whole rumor problem.

However, after he slammed the door on his way out, I heard the faint sound of a man crying his heart out. Yes, Indigo was crying. Probably out of pain. I certainly didn't feel pity for him. Especially since he just yelled unintelligible gibberish about ratting me out and making me look like a criminal. And he... called _me_ a freak. Fucking hypocrite.

You... already know the rest...

 

(END OF YURI'S NARRATION)

 

* * *

 

 

Natsuki's face was red with rage. She felt like a complete asshole for making her girlfriend retell such a traumatic life.

Just like her Father was.

"A part of me really wanted to let you slug that bastard, but that would mean... I'd be letting you fight my battles. I know we're... s-supposed to be here for each other... b-but..." The poor soul could hardly continue. Natsuki felt her stomach twist and turn inside-out as she watched a small tear followed by many large ones trickle down to Yuri's throat. She watched her bury her face in her hands.

However, these tears did not seem to be filled with trauma. They were hot. Hot with the anger Natsuki shared.

Usually, she would comfort the weeping mess in front of her with a smile and a gentle pair of hands massaging her shoulders. But now, she chose not to. She didn't dare to even lay a finger on her while she was having a mental breakdown.

Instead, she decided to get up so she could leave the room. She figured that Yuri needed some time to herself. She was wrong. The weeping woman found the strength to snatch the pinkette's wrist just as she started to pace out the door.

"No... please."

"I am sorry, love. I wasn't trying to make you-- whoa!"

Before she could say one more pathetically apologetic word, the woman with tears stinging her eyes pulled Natsuki in for probably one of the most passionate hugs they've ever had. Yuri's grip was firm around the pinky's smooth back.

She grabbed the rest of the body, pulled it onto the bed, and shifted around so that the pinky would be under her. This left the pinky surprised. Yuri's free left hand slowly moved to unbuttoned the younger one's pajamas.

 

_Wait, what are you doing?_

 

That hand's fingers then traced several figure-eights around the younger one's chest and stomach before moving on to other parts. Natsuki just had to respond. It was better than sitting still. So, she shut her eyes and let her right hand explore the curves of her idol before letting it slip underneath Yuri's tank top.

 

_No! Stop! I'm not that kind of girl!_

 

"Don't you dare think for a second that you're responsible for my pain," said the elegant violet hovering above the pink rose.

The pinkette's left fist was clenched, not just because of how breathtaking the dejä-vu experience was, but also out of rage and anger towards that delusional prick. If only Yuri had told her sooner.

She shunned that unnecessary thought as Yuri trailed her fingers up and down Natsuki's spine. She later found her hands traversing every square inch of Natsuki's body, scratching in some places. Yuri was being more rough than usual, but Natsuki didn't mind. As long as she could do _something_ (anything at all) to make the poor thing release all of that pent up stress and aggression, she was satisfied. She didn't care about how that was done. All that mattered after hearing such a disturbing backstory was the safety of her only reason to live; her savior from the darkness that would have consumed her years ago had she not intervened.

 

**_Stop it!_ **

**_Indy!!_ **

 

Yuri suddenly forced the gap to reopen. Yuri's frown only worsened as she looked at Natsuki. What just happened? Moments ago, she had full control over herself. Now, she was questioning her trust in her own body.

"Shh... it's okay," she said silently as she once again closed the gap between them and hugged Yuri's head, burying it in her small, yet warm chest.

"If you have anything you want to talk about, give me a signal and I'll do whatever I can. No 'ifs', 'ands', or 'buts', okay?"

The woman with glistening lilac eyes felt a little more encouraged by the pinky's words. "And if you ever need to take your frustrations out on anything," Natsuki continued.

"Then I'll listen. I'll endure your anger. You are nothing like my Father, so you can take it out on me as much as you please."

Now Yuri felt unsure. "Wouldn't that make me a hypocrite myself," she asked, ample amounts of concern filling her mind.

"No, it wouldn't. Besides, I would actually be fine with it. You might as well have something to help you with, right?"

That last comment certainly frightened Yuri. "Stop it, Natsuki," she pleaded. "The fact that you're thinking of yourself as a stress toy for me just isn't right! It isn't fair!"

"So what if I am? You deserve better! You deserve _way_ more than just a recurring nightmare to turn to! If you think I'm letting you handle that dumbass alone, you're cra-- I mean..."

Natsuki stopped herself, worrying that any word related to the term 'insanity' would make the tortured soul feel worse in some form. She wanted to be as much of an opposite of that monster as she possibly could. Especially at a time like this.

*Siiiiiigh* "I'm sorry. Please understand me, sweetie. I just want to help. I... I..."

 _Aye-yie-yie, What a broken pair we are,_  Yuri thought.

"Let's just get some sleep, alright," Yuri questioned. "We've got some shit to work through tomorrow, you know." Natsuki knew she was right and scooted back down a little, locking her gaze straight with Yuri's. They smiled as they complimented each other for how glamorous their eyes were. As the digital clock next to the lamp struck 11:30, they knew they had to stop having fun. They needed to save it for tomorrow's escapade.

So, they closed their glistening eyes, turned off the lights, and fell fast asleep as their embrace was as tight and comforting as it could be.

_Let me help you, Yuri. Let me ease the weight of your burdens._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus, this is probably my longest and heaviest chapter yet. THIS was a chapter worth making, in my opinion. I'm not declaring that it's the best, but you have to admit it's somewhat decent. I mean, there's nothing like a good ol' traumatic experience backstory to get the blood flowing, right?


	9. A Get-Together To Remember

*BEEP* *BEEP* BEEP*

The alarm on Yuri's phone went off like a fire alarm waking the sleeping beauties up with a start. Yuri quickly shut it down as Natsuki bounced off the bed, her messy hair covering half of her face.

_That's what happens when you screw around with the settings of your new phone too much, dumbass._

It was 9:50 A.M. WAY more than enough time to prepare. "Goddamnit," Natsuki complained. "Can you please make that thing more subtle next time?" Yuri bit her lip. "My bad," she admitted.

As Natsuki groggily rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and waddled to the shower, she felt the need to apologize to the jasmine lover for the night before. However, she also figured it would be even better if she didn't utter another word about it. So, she stayed silent. She shut the door behind her, undressed and twisted the knobs controlling the temperature of the water.

When she entered the tub and moved the curtains, she heard a knock on the door. Through the curtains she could see her girlfriend poking her head out, eyes covered for the sake of manners. "Do you need anything," the lilac haired girl asked. Natsuki was certain, but she checked her surroundings anyway to be positive. "Nope, I'm good," she replied after a few seconds.

Who would have thought Yuri had such a strange setup? The shampoo and body soap sat on a small shelf built into the wall behind her and the conditioner sat on another integral shelf in front of her. Oh well, no need to dwell on that. She finished up ten minutes later, wrapping a large towel around her as she got out. Yuri was waiting patiently for her turn as her girlfriend signaled her to get inside. She quickly got in and washed up.

 _Why does Nat smell like... a jasmine,_ Yuri thought as she passed by. She must have used her shampoo. It didn't suit the pinkie as much as her own products did, but it was still nice, nonetheless.

 **10:02 A.M**.

While she was doing that, Natsuki was busy with other things. Shit, what was she going to wear? She forgot to pack her things for this occasion like an idiot. She sighed in defeat, acknowledging that she had no choice but to 'waste' her girlfriend's supplies. She promised this wasn't going to happen again, yet it did happen.

She searched through the drawers in the bedroom. Nothing. Nothing that would work on her, at least. That is, until she found Yuri's most iconic (in her opinion) outfit; a tan colored sweater that was so warm and fuzzy, you could use it as a blanket or even a pillow, as well as some skinny black pants that really made a girl's cute ass stick out.

**10:05 A.M.**

This outfit almost always gave Natsuki a nosebleed because of how undeniably sexy Yuri looked in it. It felt weird to her that she was going to wear something that not only belonged to someone else, but also wasn't what her friends would expect. Then again, it wasn't like she was going to be judged... Hopefully.

_Damnit, all of her bras are too... big. Welp, might as well go home rather than go big this time._

Yuri exited the bathroom and re-entered the bedroom to find a princess sitting patiently on her bed. No, not a princess; a goddess!

Yuri just stood there, taken aback by the smaller one's choices. She wasn't angry or upset. She was genuinely surprised. "Sorry," said Natsuki as she blushed madly. "I'll take this off. Don't get the wrong idea; I forgot to pack my own shit and I couldn't find anything else to wear." Yuri smacked herself on the cheeks to stay focused.

**10:10 A.M.**

"N-No, don't," exclaimed the tall one. "You look great!" Natsuki only blushed more. At this point, her face was beet red. Yuri was giggling as she stepped closer to the nervous-nellie. "Talk about a role-reversal," said Yuri as she tightly squeezed the munchkin. This made Natsuki laugh with glee.

**10:13 A.M.**

Moments past and they quickly realized the schedule was much tighter than the embrace. They paced back and forth between rooms as they got themselves ready for today's meeting. It almost felt like they were going back to the literature club in high school. Yuri put on a bright blue t-shirt and some dark jeans before she applied the finishing touches to her makeup. While she was doing that, Natsuki was working on her wacko hairdo next to her.

"Careful you don't get toasted by this iron."

"Roger that Eagle One."

After Nat finished her hairstyle and clipped her trademark hairpin into place, she saw the bunch of tattoos on Yuri's arms.

She was effing amazed at how badass they made her, even in this day and age. When they both completed their individual tasks, all that was needed were some keys and a driver.

"I'm driving. You can't stop me," said the girl sternly. "You sure," Natsuki asked. She was still a tad bit unsure of whether Yuri could handle it after her accident. "I'll be fine. The only reason I crashed is because of someone else's mistakes." True. There was no point in arguing, so Natsuki decided to just let it be.

"You ready," she asked.

"Whenever you are, sweetie."

_Still loving that phrase._

 

**10:18 A.M.**

 

___________________________

 

**10:41 A.M.**

Yuri looked ahead of her to see the god-awful traffic as she searched for their destination. Natsuki was paying more attention to the scenery as people whizzed by like winged insects. "There it is," Yuri stated as she pointed to her left. As they saw the diner, they also found Monika's car which was sitting next to a slew of other vehicles. Early bird as always, Natsuki pondered. They parked on left side of the line.

 **10:44 A.M.** A minute early, but it didn't matter.

When they got out, they saw a familiar face with an iconic crimson bow tied in her hair leaning against the wall next to the doorway. She was wearing a hot pink t-shirt as well as some jean-shorts. Natsuki decided to play her occasional prank. She honked the horn and laughed as the peach haired girl jumped. "You said you would never do that again," scolded Yuri. "I said I would never do it to _you_ again, silly." Natsuki playfully shoved her. They approached the startled girl.

She was rubbing the circle of her aching neck. She must've had a rough time sleeping last night.

Pfft, unless she was sleeping with her sweetie pie.

Speaking of which, for some reason, Monika was nowhere to be seen. Natsuki apologized for her prank as she looked around.

"Where's Monika," Yuri asked. "Did something happen?" Sayori gestured towards the interior of the diner as she said, "No, she just went to use the restroom in there... Speak of the devil."

The trio quickly became a quad as a certain ponytailed girl wearing a green top and some light blue jeans rushed out of the facility screaming, "Hey!". She hugged the two oddballs tightly like a great aunt who hasn't seen her nieces and/or nephews in years.

Sayori noticed something that she had to point out. "Natsuki, you are looking fine in... Yuri's sweater?" Natsuki remembered what she was wearing and began to blush again. "Let me guess: you slept at your girlfriend's but you forgot your own stuff," Monika teased.

Natsuki was tomato-red now. "Moniiiii, stahp that," Sayori scolded, nudging her wife. "What? I'm just asking!" Monika let go of the two girls and put a hand around her wife's waist. "Anyway, let's have some fun!" Monika fisted the air with her free hand as she cheered.

They entered the diner with full smiles on their faces. "Drinks are on me," Natsuki declared. They were all feeling equally excited. It's been a hot minute they've spent time together as a group like this.

"Table for four, please," Yuri told the waitress.

"Right this way."


	10. Issues

_Thirty-one... thirty-two... thirty-three... thirty-four..._

Indigo counted his sit-ups in his head as he steadily breathed in and out. He was sitting alone in his room while he was exercising at 10:45 in the morning. He just felt the need to get back into shape. He's been slacking since last month when he moved back into his old home. When he reached forty, he sat up and felt his nose. Thank god his Mother was a professional when it came to injuries like this one. She could fix almost anything thanks to her medical training. Her pHd could be seen on the living room wall next to the television. Indigo's nose still tingled a little bit, but at least there wasn't anymore legitimate pain to endure.

He shifted his body into a plank-like position and carried onto his push-ups. While he was doing that, he thought about what he could do to after this week's encounter. His serious face changed into a more saddening look. He didn't know what to do now that he had revealed himself to Yuri for the first time in years.

Why would he do that?

That beautiful, innocent girl probably had a carefree life without his interference. Now she had another obstacle in her way. Why did Indigo feel the need to ruin her life yet again by showing himself? He stopped moving up and down and sat back up with his legs in a cross.

Indigo's fists clenched hard. He curled up into a human ball as he contemplated his choices. Such idiocy! He promised to himself that he wouldn't be stupid and attempt to befriend a person who most likely despised him. He turned to the left to see a phone sitting flat on his desk. That phone contained the pictures of the past. Indigo stood up straight and picked it up to look at those photos.

Why would he do that?

He looked through the photos for what had to be the twenty-fifth time. He knew it wasn't healthy to hold onto the past and how detrimental it could be. So, he tried to limit the amount of time he spent looking through them. It was a recommendation from his own Mother. Sadly, the only thing she knew about this whole schtick was how he got that mortifying wound in his stomach. She didn't know what her son did to get that. He was such a filthy liar-- no, sinner. He never expected forgiveness from anyone at this rate.

How he managed to keep living despite that ocean of guilt constantly crashing against the shores of his mind, he didn't have a damn clue. He shook his head to focus on the recent questions gyring his head. For example, 'Why did Yuri tell that pinkie to stand down?' He was genuinely surprised by her actions that night.

Why didn't she let that spicy girl lash out at him? He knew he deserved it after the sins he committed.

What did she want to do? What's her intention? What is--

So many 'whats' and 'whys', so little time. Indigo wasn't that bright anyway. He paced back and forth from one side of his room to the other. He needed a plan that would fix everything; A fool-proof one. He had to think harder than ever about this one. This matter was really important to him. He needed to find a way to make Yuri happy AND regain her trust.

_Wait a minute..._

It finally hit him.

_That's it!_

Indigo's brain was working like a clock now. He just had a major idea.

But then it quickly died down. Indigo recognized the consequences of this plan. He would need to do something drastic order for it to work; He would have to bury the past several feet under. He didn't want to do that because it was one of the very few things that kept him going throughout his life. However, he knew what was more important. His fate was sealed from the very beginning of this stupid predicament anyway.

Indigo walked over to his drawers and opened them all. He found a stack of empty lined paper in the second one. He picked up the stack and grabbed a pencil from his desk before sitting at the chair in front of it and writing down his intentions.

_Wait, shit, what does Yuri like again? Oh yeah, poems! That'd be a nice little bonus, right?_

Indigo wasn't really the best at poetry, but he believed he could make something decent. He looked up a list of complicated words on his phone to use in his work.

_Ooooh, that one's good... that too... another one... and..._

When Indigo was finished, he stuffed papers in separate envelopes that he found in the third drawer and wrote down the recipient's address on each of them; One of them contained an important message, while the other had his gifts for Yuri inside. It was a longshot, but he couldn't just give it to her in person. That would only make the situation even bleaker. So, he had no choice but to leave it up to luck, which he absolutely hated doing with every fiber of his being. He licked the sticky substance on the tip of the seal and folded it slowly and evenly.

_Please, let this location not be mistaken._

He could hear his mother calling out to her son, saying she was heading for work. Indigo said goodbye and moved into part two of his plan. He quickly rinsed himself off in the shower. Then he dressed up, grabbed the house key, and exited through the front door.

It's time to make amends.

It's time to forgive and forget.

It's time to put the toys away and grow up!

 

___________________________

 

**10:57 A.M.**

 

"Ten-thousand yen," Sayori exclaimed as she stared at the total amount on the check. She was sipping her tonic as she looked and nearly choked. She groaned at the numbers while Monika rubbed her back. "It's alright, sweetie." Natsuki was taken aback by this. "What's wrong," she asked sincerely.

Monika sighed. "Long-story-short, she's been having some issues finding a job," she said blankly. Natsuki sat there surprised by what she just heard. The jasmine lover decided to pipe in and see if she could help. "What exactly happened? I can give you some advice if you need it."

Sayori put her hand up as she thanked and rejected the offer. Clearly, she preferred not to say much. "I just applied at the wrong time. It was a small business and, within a year and a month or so since I've been there, it shut down." Must've been really rough for her. She was so dedicated to that job, too. "Don't worry," she refuted. "I'm sure I can find a new one within this week. How's things for you two?"

Natsuki rubbed her forehead and groaned. Unlike the straw-blondy, she definitely had the will to say _something_ at least. "Ugh, don't even get me started. All I've been doing was stapling papers and doing other miscellaneous things. Granted, it's just a stepping stone to get the job I really want."

"Ah yes, you want to be a manga artist." Monika knew who wanted what like the back of her hand by now. "Read me like a frickin' book why don't ya," said the pinkie in a gangsta accent.

Monika snickered before asking what Yuri was aiming for. "I'm hoping to make my own novels and publish them around the world." An interesting choice.

"What about you?" Monika was simply hoping she could become a professional psychologist, mainly because of her wife's severe depression during high school. She didn't want other people to endure such needless suffering like Sayori did.

Although everyone was at a lower level of economic success than they had anticipated, they still had high hopes for the future. They each used their own yen to pay for their individual meals. Sayori eventually cheered up as they exited the restaurant. They hugged each other and said goodbye to each other before climbing into their cars and pulling out of their spots, driving in the same direction until they reached their second traffic light.

"Here we are," Natsuki said as she finally pulled into Yuri's house. "Now, I've got to change out of this outfit and--"

"Why?"

"Because it's your clothes, dummy!"

"Not anymore. That outfit is too _small_ for me nowadays." Yuri cockily laughed like a cartoon villain with the back of her hand hovering over her mouth.

Natsuki simply flipped her off with an annoyed look. She had managed to grow to an acceptable height, but Yuri insisted on making playful jokes about it every now and then.

Yuri only laughed more at the twisted expression on the younger one's face. It made her feel a mix of humor and adore. She gave the cutie-pie a quick kiss on the lips before exiting the car. She thanked her for the trip, and Natsuki waved goodbye as she shifted gears and pulled back out.

Yuri waved back as tears of joy trickled down her cheeks. Today was so much fun. She wished they could spent time together like this every day, just like they did at the literature club. She turned around to see her house. Then, she noticed something different: the plastic flag on her mailbox was up.

 _Who could it be from,_ she wondered. She opened it up and pulled out two envelopes. What she saw that was written on them nearly made her blow a thousand fuses simultaneously.

 

Letters from... Indigo. Ugh.

 

She held the envelopes with a terrifying grip. How did he know where she lived? She even didn't want to hear or read his name. She was absolutely livid with that bastard. Why should she look into anything related to the lunatic who made her previous life a living hell? She could just tear the stupid wastes of space up.

Then again, it would be best to just be rational and listen to whatever kind of pathetic excuse for an apology her ex-boyfriend had in store. She walked into her house and locked the door before finding a small pair of scissors in the kitchen cupboard to slice the seal open. She took out the paper and read it to see what he wanted. Her emotions suddenly changed from anger to curiosity; a conflicted curiosity, but it still made her read either way.

 

To: Yuri

"Hey, I hope the envelope made it safely. You might be wondering what I, a vile sinner, could possibly want from you. I know for a fact that you don't really want me to be around anymore, but please hear me out."

"First off, I want to make a few things clear:"

"I have absolutely no intention of trying to make you mine. I had only one chance to do that years ago and I blew it. I'm not trying to interrupt your life, even though my actions from last night say otherwise. My goal is to make up for my selfishness and vulgarity."

"With that said, I have a minor request for you; Follow the address written at the bottom of this note. Please meet me there in 30 minutes. You may bring your friend if you choose. I simply want to talk to you about something and I hope we can resolve things peacefully."

From: Indigo

P.S. You don't need to look at the second envelope's contents right now. That's just bonus material that I figured you would like.

 

Yuri immediately pulled her phone out of her pocket and called her girlfriend. She reluctantly decided to play Indigo's game. On the bright side, it would give her the chance to fight her own battles. She could finally resolve her own conflict! Seems like a decent scenario.

"What's wrong," said the recipient.

"There's something I need to show you. I'm sending a picture of it to you now. Tell the others to join, okay?"

"Will do. Need a ride?"

"No, thank you. I'll just ride my bike."

"'Kay. Be safe alright? Love you!"

"Love you too. *Smooch* Bye!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, thanks for the over 115 hits! Y'all are awesome!


	11. Clouded Judgment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, this was later than I wanted it to be, mainly because of the fact that I had some script problems. Those have been successfully resolved. That said, I hope you enjoy!

"Are you out of your freaking mind," Natsuki exclaimed. She was utterly flabbergasted at what Yuri was saying. "How did he even know where you live?!" Everyone was gathered around the front gates of Kinuta Park to discuss the game plan for this situation. They had limited time to talk; approximately twenty minutes left. "Wait, did you say his name was Indigo?" Monika and Sayori were leaning against the wall next to the gates, anxiously hoping to find a solution. Sayori just overheard what was being said and took advantage of it. "Yeah, why?" Yuri was puzzled. Did Sayori know him by chance? That would be kinda neat, but it would be mostly nerve racking.

Sayori started bouncing with excitement. Her facial look changed from 'confused thinking' to 'hyped-up acknowledgement' as she called it sometimes. "Ohmygod, ohmygod, ohmygod! I know him! He and I were actually best friends since middle school!"

Interesting. Maybe she could give them important information about him so they can figure out what to do. "What was he like," Monika asked. She, unlike the others, had absolutely no stinking idea who 'Indigo' was. Natsuki was intrigued by the fact that Sayori seemingly never said a word to her. Straw-blondy was surprised herself. Didn't she show her the pictures they took together on her phone? She thought she did, at least. Maybe she just forgot.

Sayori explained to her the basics. "He and I first met at this place called 'Yokushio Multicultural Church'. It was where my parents taught me everything I know nowadays about religious stuff. We saw each other one day, smiled, and carried on with our prayers. After that day, we wound up talking more often. Eventually, we started to like each other. Then that liking turned into love.

 _Oh no,_  Monika shuttered.

"We didn't fuck or make-out or do anything sexual. We just had a cute, simplistic, and healthy relationship as besties."

_Phew._

"He was a really nice guy, and he accepted me as a best friend. But..."

Sayori then remembered something else. She sighed with grief. Something tragic happened a year after their breakup. She felt sorry for Indigo and for not being there to help when he needed her. It was a heartbreaking sight: her best friend lying on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably to the point where his tears were washed with crimson. She shivered as she thought of the burning destruction and charred corpses. It was just flat-out appualing how something like that could happen.

"And?" Yuri had to pipe up a little. Sayori shook her head. "N-Never mind..." It's not like any of those gory details mattered. "Point of it is I know this man. I can talk to him and he'll hopefully listen." Then she noticed something significant she didn't pick up on before. "Hey Yuri, can you show me that address again?"

"Sure."

Yuri the note out of her pocket and gave it to Sayori, who was seriously thinking hard about something. Sayori looked at the note. "Holy Guacamole! This is the same address as the church!" The others took a peek for themselves. Monika looked at her wife quizzically. "Wait, why would this Indigo person pick a church of all things as a meet-and-greet locale," she questioned.

"I dunno," said the straw-blondy.

Yuri figured they should get going. It was 10:00. "Okay, it's settled then--"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Hang on a minute, sweetheart! We don't even know what this guy may or may not have up his sleeve! You know how creative he can be!" Natsuki was very skeptical about following through with this whole schtick. She could've gone on for an hour about the dangers of this man, but they didn't have enough time for that. "Nat, please," said Yuri. "I don't trust him either, but if we don't do this, he probably won't stop." True. He'd be nagging at them to see him for all they knew. Or would he? Either way, Natsuki was still unsure, so she turned to the hair bow fanatics who blankly shrugged. The pinkette sighed in defeat. "Fine, but I'm only going because the rest of you are." That seemed reasonable enough.

"Alrighty then!" Sayori clapped her hands together as she stood up. "Let's roll!"

"Wait! I need to attach my bike before you zoom off, dang it!"

 

___________________________

 

_You could have done so much more, you know._

It was a hot summer day and Indigo was sitting tiredly in front of the charred confines of Yokushio Multicultural Church. That voice in his head was so damn annoying. It didn't make him feel bad anymore; just flat out annoyed because of how many times he heard it say negative bullshit. He pulled out his phone and looked at the clock.

**10:12 A.M.**

_She's most likely turned down your request. Smart girl. How could she possibly trust a foul sinner anyway?_

That's one thing Indigo couldn't disagree with. He knew was a sinner. A sinner who couldn't do anything for his own flesh and blood. A sinner who threatened to rape someone and break the golden rule of the church. A sinner who lies to his mother. A sinner who has the IQ of a spoiled brat.

A sinner with no one to turn to for help.

Most people have checkbooks full of their friends names, numbers, and addresses.

_You have no one, Indy._

Most people play video games or post random shit on social media.

_You still have no one._

Everyone has a friend who can trust them and vice versa.

_No one, Mr. Loner. No one. It's just you and your sickly old woman... How **vexing.**_

His hand went under his hoodie to feel the giant scar on his stomach.

_Right there. That's where it needs to go. Precisely where it hurts._

Indigo believed this was what had to be done in order for his ex to truly move on. He wanted to just coexist with her, but because she was so afraid, there was no way in Heaven or Hell that could ever happen. One of them had to go and it sure as shit wasn't gonna be Yuri. She had succeeded where Indigo failed. She was far more worthy.

Indigo saw something in the distance. Was it a car? Yep. He could see it traversing up the road towards him. He wished it would just hit him, but then all of the work put into setting things up would be wasted.

_Just be your civil self, and this'll be over in a heartbeat._

The car parked itself in the grassiness on the right side of the road. The passengers opened the doors and got out. One of them had an iconic hair bow Indigo recognized almost instantly. Could it be...?

"S... S-Sayori?"

"Hi, Indy! It's been so long!"

Sayori Ozaki. Indy's best friend. She came all this way to see him. But why? Why would she do something so imbecilic? She obviously had better things to do. Sayo tried to hug him, but he put his hand up to stop her. "I'm waiting for Yu--" Before he could finish, he watched the other doors swing open.

Yuri stepped out of her passenger seat and, dear lord, she looked absolutely gorgeous. Indigo scoffed. He never deserved her in the first place. Especially after all he put her through. It made perfect sense that she had to be the one to return the favor. He kept his composure as he stood up. He saw another pair of girls exit the vehicle.

_There's the pinkie. No idea who the brunette with a ponytail is, but okay._

Yuri saw Indigo sitting in front of the church. He had a strange expression on his face. It wasn't anger or sadness. It actually seemed happy and a tad bit innocent. But she had to keep her guard up. Natsuki wasn't particularly wrong when she said this guy was crafty.

The man with amber eyes stood up straight and spread his arms like an bird's wings. He deeply inhaled the crisp summer air and exhaled smoothly.

"Praise Jesus! Hello, Yuri! It is a pleasure to see you once more. You know, I never expected you to actually heed my call, nor was I anticipating my gamble's success, but--"

"Cut the introductory crap and tell me what you want. First of all, how did you know where to send that note?" Most of the group was slightly shaken by her girlfriend's serious tone. Indigo, however, had no fear. He knew she'd be upset in some form. How could she not be? Now Indigo was certain his plan would work.

Indigo looked up at Yuri. Seeing her this close gave him quite the nostalgic feeling. Hold on, what was with her arms?

_Are those... tattoos? Dear lord, that's badass!_

**_Eyes on the prize, Kapelle._ **

_Oh, er... right._

He did as he was told and got straight to the point. "Oh that? I merely relied upon luck to pull that off. Nothing special, trust me." Wow. That's definitely a first. Indigo looked at the clock on his phone again. He smirked with pride.

 _Soon, Dear Father. Soon_.

He reached for his back and pulled out something shiny, silver, and (above all) intimidating out of  his hoodie's front pocket. Yuri saw what it was and her skin color went pale-white all over.

It was a knife. Not just any knife, though; it was Yuri's overall favorite. A knife developed by German artisan Artu Devon Friezwiche when WWII came to a close. Twelve inches tall, nineteen centimeters wide in total, and a handle no longer than six inches.

Regional Deluxe as it was referred to.

Natsuki was scared shitless beyond belief, Sayori was quaking in her boots, and Monika was just appalled. But, Indigo held both hands up to show that he wasn't looking for a fight. He held out his knife hand as if he was trying to give said knife to his ex. Why? What's this man playing at?

Yuri instinctively took the weapon and held it with a tight grip. "W-What are you...?" Yuri wanted answers and she wanted them now.

"I think you already know what to do, Yuri."

"What am I supposed to do with-- where did you even get this...?"

Indigo sighed. He thought she'd immediately end it all. "You can find almost anything online. Though, the prices are rather blasphemous if you wish for my opinion."

Indigo kept his eyes on the prize. He had to end this quickly. He raised his voice as he persisted on encouraging his ex.

"Yuri... please. You should know what I want. What I need!"

_Like hell I should! He's not seriously considering...!_

Indigo lifted up his hoodie with both hands, revealing the gross scar on his stomach. Monika and Sayori stood there, amazed and terrified by what they were seeing while Natsuki was shaking wildly.

"Yuri. Please. I'm begging you to finish what I started. You are worthy of God's blessings, not me!"

What was he saying? Worthiness? God? It didn't make any sense! Indigo just stood there, arms held up in surrender. He wanted Yuri end his life. Wanted her to strike exactly where she did six years back. He knew this would work. He just knew.

Then again, what did he really know?

What did he know about sins and how to atone for them? What did he know about women and how you should watch yourself around them? What did he know about anything?

Nothing.

He never knew what anyone wanted. He didn't truly know about anything, really. Sure, he knew a few things, but he never truly knew those either. The only thing he really, truly, honest-to-God knew was how to remember the dumb, miscellaneous shit he did back then and his wise, kindhearted Father.

Yuri looked at Indigo and saw his face suddenly covered with trails of tears. He legitimately wanted to die. He didn't seem afraid of the concept either. However, the jasmine lover couldn't just kill an innocent human being! She couldn't deny the fact that Indigo did several things wrong in the past, but that was no excuse for murder. Besides, why couldn't he just do it himself? She rebelliously tossed the knife aside, nailing it into the dirt, and shouted, "I won't! Not now, not ever! You think I'm going to just slice and dice without a care the world like the maniac I once was? Bullshit!"

Indigo was shocked. No, not just shocked. He felt a sudden wave of anger rush throughout his body.

"S... So you're saying..."

Indigo tried to keep his cool. Losing his temper here wouldn't solve anything. But still, did Yuri forget what he did to her? Was it wrong for justice to be served? The fact that Yuri, a cool and collective enforcer of subjects such as justice and peace, would turn down an opportunity like this left Indigo completely baffled.

"Y-You're joking... right?"

Indigo's mind grew fuzzy. He didn't know what to think anymore. His thoughts bounced around the interior of his head like pinballs in a pinball machine.

"You would subvert justice for the sake of my life?! Do you not recollect the sins I have committed? The acts of treachery and selfishness?"

Oh, Yuri knew alright. And she didn't give a damn about it or this mockery of 'justice'. Get that shit outta here.

Indigo was losing patience fast. He questioned himself as several negative emotions flooded his bloodstream. His guilt quickly became a raging torrent within his veins. What would his Mother say?

Tears rushed to his left eye, leaving his right one was bone dry. Weird. Either way, Indigo couldn't take much more. He just couldn't stand existing with people who succeeded, unlike him. Yuri noticed this change of mentality and calmed down a little. She almost felt bad. Not really bad, just... normal bad. She felt like a bully hanging a toddler over the toilet.

Sayori stared at her old friend. Now everyone was asking themselves the same question; why did Indigo want to die? Was he really depressed? He could have been, but he was so passionate and open. However, it also could have been an act no different from the way Sayori hid her depression. It was all just so confusing. Too confusing for Moni and Nat to wrap their heads around. They were just standing there, feeling many different kinds of insecurity. They were scared; not for themselves, but for the man having a severe mental crisis in front of them. Such triviality. Who'd have thought things would happen like this? Nat sure as hell didn't. Neither did the brunette.

"I... cannot... withstand..." Indigo was breathing fast, hard and shakily. It was so nerve racking to witness. Yuri decided to take action after a few seconds. "What's wrong," she asked with a more settled tone.

"I cannot say. I will not say."

"What do you mean?! We need to know. We want to help! Don't you dare think for a split second that you can end yourself freely. You'll have to pin me down with chains for that to happen!"

Indigo quickly walked over to the knife Yuri tossed aside. The tall girl was quick, though, as she immediately snatched it before Indigo could do anything and hid it behind her back, skipping away from the delusional moron. Indigo was about to loose his fucking mind. Why couldn't anything work?

He sighed heavily before shouting loudly, "I need not your frustrations, Yuri." Indy bolted towards Yuri with godspeed, his arms reaching desperately for the knife.

**_ "͈̱̕I̶͈͚̯̖̳̟̰ ̱J̵Ú̮̤̜̲̳̲S͍̳̳T̖̲͙̗͓̘͎͠ ͏̟̮͈͚͉N͇̫̺̰E̷͙̰̬͕͇E̱̦̱D̴̘͔̘̞̮̭͙ ̻̼T͟O̲̪̖̫͔͡ ̸̘̥͓̜Ḅ̛͎̟̞̪̺̥E̬̙̪ ̠̮̭̤̤͇͍D̸͎̥̘̜̘̱̱E͕̲͉̹͠A͎̜D͔͚̺!!̭͉̬̠̫̯"͈͙̫ͅ _ **

 

That glitchy, bloodcurdling scream was completely unnatural. So unnatural, it made the group flinch. What the shit was that?!

"Enough!" Sayori was sick of hearing her best friend talk like this. Damn this religious shit to hell. Clearly, it's corrupted him, too. Only, this time, it was more detrimental. She tackled the poor guy like it was NFL in America before he could get within arms' reach. The straw-blondy had Indigo completely pinned down to the ground. She shouted at him sincerely, hoping to snap him out of this feeling of misery. "This will not solve a damn thing, Indy! Do you understand?!" Sayo's sweat was ice cold.

"Why do you continuously pester me about life as if it is a great thing to live? My sins are worthy of death! How none of you managed to understand that is beyond--"

"Because we care, Indy! _We care!_ Whatever conditions you have, we can help you, just give us a chance! Give _yourself_ a chance!"

"That is exactly what I'm doing, you atrocious nincompoop!"

What did he mean by that? That makes no sense. How does one commit suicide by demanding someone else to do the dirty deed and consider it as an atonement? The other three girls gathered around them. Monika had already called 9-1-1 and Natsuki was currently speaking with someone on the Suicide Prevention Hotline.

"No, please. I only wish to atone for my sins! Is that so hard to ask?!" Both of Indigo's eyes were bloodshot as the tears flew down his face. He didn't want to go anywhere. Not until he had fulfilled his mission. Especially if he was just going there to talk to strangers he never knew.

Indigo wanted to fight. He wanted to squirm and struggle and hopefully knock the girl off of him. But he couldn't. No longer did he possess the mental capacity to lift a finger. Sayori lowered her head and hugged her bestie tightly.

"Shh, shh, shhhhh. It's going to be okay, Indy. We can help you. We _will_ help you."


	12. True Colors

Sirens wailed as a miniature squadron of five police cars and an ambulance raced towards the abandoned church. Sayori firmly held her best friend down. The police force grounded to a halt a few yards from the girls' method of transportation. Sayo pondered for a moment as the doors were swung open.

What was Indigo trying to accomplish with suicide? Was he depressed? Or did he seriously believe that his death would remove the scars of the past?

Sayori could see the brokenness and feelings of deep regret on Indy's face. Her head started to hurt a little. Ugh, her brain wasn't meant to think this hard with such little information. She and the others had to find an answer. Soon.

Indigo was having a temper tantrum in his head as the officers  swarmed the antique church. He kept the straight face, but he couldn't really do it for long with all of that anger and the sudden appetite for reckless self-destruction. Why couldn't things work in his favor just once? A plan that he made himself that would actually work; hmph, such a childish dream. Life never works the way we expect it. Once again, Imdigo was proven wrong by reality. This whole damn operation was completely retarded from the start and it was an utter waste of time.

 _In what universe did you think this shit would work,_  He imagined his Mother screaming.

Another sin to add to the résumé.

This cycle of life felt so redundant. Attempt to commit suicide, wind up in a psychological facility, get scolded AND comforted simultaneously by your Mother, rinse and repeat. A meaningless procedure like that had no place in Indigo's life, yet it continued to break his mind down day by day. Why? Because he deserved it after what he did. Not just in the past, but also in recent days.

A paramedic eventually got out of the ambulance walked up to the group of girls and Indigo with a set of questions, his notepad out and ready.

"Okay, I'm gonna ask a few questions just to get some information about this whole mess, a'ight?" The girls agreed.

"A'ight then; what exactly caused this?"

Yuri answered, "He sent us a letter to meet us at this place. We don't know why he chose _here_  of all places, though."

The paramedic scribbled these notes down and moved on to the next question.

"Why did he want to kill himself?"

Sayori chose to answer this one. She stayed on top of Indy, though, just to make sure he didn't book it for the knife which was now driven into the dirt by Yuri. Indigo's amber eyes sharpened. Already, the police are getting into the personal stuff. But it was okay, because they didn't know a damn thing and they never will. No one needs to know his ludicrous grievances. They were probably nothing compared to what other people experienced. No, _definitely_ nothing.

"He kept repeating how Yuri was more 'worthy of God's blessings' or something. He was trying to 'redeem' himself for his sins. We don't know what happened though."

The medical officer continued to write. This process continued for a few minutes with most of the answers being unknown. The officer then said, "A'ight Mr. Kapelle. Please, come with us. You won't be arrested and you're certainly not in any trouble. We just want to ask a few questions directly. Your friends can come too if they please."

The girls accepted this request without a second thought. Sayori helped Indy up and held his right arm tightly. Not that she had any affection towards him as a lover would. She was just trying to make sure the poor guy didn't make a break for the knife shoved into the dirt, which would later be picked up by other officers for study.

The officers guided the group to a nearby ambulance sitting west of the road passing the church. Sayori and Yuri sat next to Indigo on the left side, while the pinkeye and the brunette sat on the right. Indigo stared hopelessly at his ruined sanctuary.

His so-called 'unshaven and ingenious plan' was easily thwarted by these... these **infidels** who haven't the slightest clue regarding why he acted so irrationally.

Tch, sounds like one of those typical anime plots that starts off swimmingly, but slowly degrades into a pile of garbage. Sayori could see Indigo's face. It was now chalk-full of pent up aggression. She knew that feeling through and through. She gently patted his back, hoping to simmer his obvious temper.

She kept doing this until they were halfway to the nearest psychiatric hospital, where a professional psychologist would find ways to assist Indigo with his emotions. Indigo despised the concept, but he had little to no choice.

He hated talking to people he didn't know. Hated the idea of sharing personal information with strangers who knew nothing about his previous life, hated spreading his fruitless disease.

As the group waltzed into the hospital with Indigo leading them, He turned his head to face the girls. Sayori and Yuri knew what was probably going through his head:

 _Damn you, I would have successfully redeemed myself if it weren't for you,_ or something like that.

Indigo was directed to the nearest room, where a seemingly cheerful man with black hair, brown eyes, and a goatee sat patiently with a full smile.

"Hello, Mr. Kapelle! You may call me Professor McCann. Such a pleasure to converse with you." Strange accent. Perhaps he was Scandinavian. "So, tell me what happened."

Indigo stayed silent. The professor raised an eyebrow in confusion. The other girls decided to give them some space. It was for the best.

They each waited anxiously outside the room as Indigo took a seat in the professor's quarters. Yuri was especially concerned. She never believed that her ex would go to such drastic lengths to redeem himself. However, she continued to feel as if was all just a hoax to make her his toy again. After that one day, she made sure to keep her guard up around friends, family, and people in general and never lower it unless the affection was genuine. This was the first time she ever saw someone act like this.

_Still, what was that idiot thinking?!_

She just shook her head. This whole mess was so complicated and unknown to her. Natsuki could sense this unease from her girlfriend. She tried to undo it by hugging her as firm as she could. Sayori also felt shaken by this turn of events. Monika felt sorry for her wife. She didn't know anything about this 'Indigo' fella, but she still hoped for the best.

Ten minutes later, they could hear frantic footsteps followed by a desperate cry for directions. "Vere's my sveet boy?! I got zee call and came as soon as I could!" Yuri was all too familiar with that feminine voice and accent; German. Could it be Indigo's Mother?

"He's in the middle of a therapy session over in that room."

"Sank you so much!" The woman rocketed towards the room where the girls were sitting. Yep, definitely Indy's Mom. She had long blonde hair, standard blue eyes, as well as an above-average bust. The woman took deep breaths to calm herself down. She looked at the women sitting near the room and raised an eyebrow. "Are any of you friends of him by chance," she asked between marginal pants. Yuri and Sayori nodded while the other two, Natsuki and Monika, shrugged their shoulders.

Natsuki spoke up a little and said, "My name's Natsuki Kizumi. Just call me Natsuki, please." Monika raised her hand. "I'm Monika Amano, and this is my wife, Sayori Ozaki. Or rather, Sayori _Amano_ , to be more appropriate." Sayori waved her hand to greet her best friend's Mother.

"Vait, Sayori Ozaki?" She looked at the straw-blondy sitting next to Monika. "You're Indy's best friend if I remember correctly. He mentioned you kvite often back zen, you know."

"Yeah, that's me," said the nervous-nellie with sea-blue eyes.

"I see..." The woman stared off into the door window, gazing into her son's dopey eyes. Yuri was on the edge of her seat. If this woman knew what could have caused this, she needed to know and she needed to know now.

"Please, tell us everything. If you know something, anything at all, then please explain. I want to help him! We all do!"

Indigo's Mother was surprised by this behavior. Her tone shifted as she said, "Vy do you vant to know?" Natsuki felt slightly antagonized by her tone. She chose to stand up for her girlfriend and raise her voice a little. "Because we deserve to know _something_ so we can help. That's all we want to do!"

People around them began to stare. Indy's Mom continued to deny this request and the two argued, blamed each other and even called each other excessive names for a minute before Yuri shoved them apart.

"Alright! Enough! Can we just settle things civilly without getting in each other's faces?" Natsuki acknowledged Yuri's feelings and stood down. She was still annoyed by this woman's ludicrous arguments, but she still did as she was told. Indy's Mom did the same. Her son would probably want her to anyway. She took another set of deeps breaths.

*Sigh*

She didn't want to expose her son. Still, since these people were supposedly trustworthy friends of his, she didn't really have the right to leave them in the dark. Indy was probably going to hate her for this, but she didn't care.

Her sweet son needed as much help as he could get. Especially in his current state.

"Alright. Promise me you von't day a single verd about zis to anyvan, okay? Please?" Yuri put her dominate hand on her chest and her other in the air, signaling that she was going to keep her lips sealed. "I promise." Everyone surrounding them went back to work beforehand, knowing that the situation was under control.

"Good. Before I do, however, I have a question about vy he vanted to do... zis."

"He kept spouting nonsense about  how I was more 'worthy' of life than himself. He wanted _me_ to kill _him_ by stabbing him with a Regional Deluxe and--"

"Vait, vait, vait... Regional Deluxe? Vere zee 'ell did he get zat sing?!"

"I don't remember! Probably online or something."

"Okay. Still, vy did he vant you to stab 'im vith zat?"

This method of suicide was very different from Indy's other attempts. Never in his life did he put the fate of his life in another person's hands. He must've really trusted this girl.

"No clue, really."

"Alright, vere did zis 'appen?"

"In front of a church of some kind not too far from here. It was old and abandoned, charred beyond recognition, except for Sayo over here. I saw a billboard next to it that gave away the name. It was all scratched up, so I couldn't really figure the whole thing out."

Inidgo's Mother huffed. Damnit all, she told him not to go near that place ever again.

"Zis explains a lot actually..."

"How so?" Yuri grew more curious.

"See, he used to go to church vith his Father, Yokushio Kappel, who vas zee Japanese clergyman AND zee founder of zed church. My huzband vas a genius in political science and vas so very fond of religious beliefs of any und every kind. Ven I met 'im, I immediately fell in love. Ve dated for a few months, graduated from college, verked and payed taxes steadily together. Van day he vanted us to get married. I 'appily accepted his proposal. Years later, ve had Indy. Indy vas... kvite zee conversationalist. However, his ideas vere often misguided."

 _Yeah, no shit, Sherlock,_ Natsuki exclaimed in her head.

"As he grew up, he became more intrigued by his Fazers verk and eventually decided to join his Fazer. Zis carried on for over seven years. He met Ms. Ozaki and zey had a stable relationship zat I supported to zee very end. Sadly, zey broke up after eight months or so. He felt absolutely miserable zat day, even zoh he vud not show it. Zen..."

Her voice trailed off and her eyes began to water a little. She preferred not to bring back the dark days. She persisted, however, knowing these people would eventually find out, regardless of her consent.

"Zen... it 'appened. On zee day right after his breakup vith Ms. Ozaki, an electrical fire sparked in zee church vhile zey vere singing und dancing. Zee fire kvickly spread sroughout zee church, cauzing its ceiling to cave in. Several people died in zat fire. Including... Yokushio."

Although the poor chap's body wanted oh so badly to break down into tears and let out her sadness, her head kept telling her to stay calm.

Silence fell upon the girls once more as Indigo's Mom spoke through her sobbing. They were utterly baffled by these news.

"It... vas sanks to my huzband's sacrifice zat Indy is still alive. Sure he had fractured both of his shoulder blades from getting crushed by falling debris und he vas covered in smog und bruises zat lasted for veeks, but he vas still alive to tell zee dreadful tale."

Oh... god.

No wonder he spoke so vigorously. Yuri rubbed her shoulders as she shivered. This level of sincerity was completely new to her. She felt so bad for Indy all of a sudden.

"Und months after zat, he comes home van day vith a goddamn stab vound beneath his ribs saying he got drugged UND jumped by a mugger!"

_Wait, no that's..._

Yuri was the one who gave him that nasty injury, not some punkass mugger. So why? Why would he not expose her to his Mother like he did his schoolmates? Her brain went back to the drawing board.

Before she could, however, the door to Indigo's room swung open violently with Indigo stepping out first. He saw his Mother's face flooding with unhappy tears. He turned an inch to the right to see the team of women standing there, eyes wide open and full of shock.

_Damnit, Mother. You've spilled the beans, haven't you? They don't need to hear my petty grievances. How precarious._

Indigo sighed with angst. "I knew this day would come, but not this soon," he muttered. Professor McCann slowly followed him. "Please, Mr. Kappel, say something so we can find a way to he--"

**_ "̬͚͓̮͓I ̸̳DO̩̫̜̬̱N̬͝'͘T̘́ ̛͈̹Ń̫̻̬̣̝E͈̮̝ED͍̗͇̣̝̯͢ ̭͖̖̮͎̱̞A̮͎̱̞N̡͙̬͙͕ͅY̨̠ͅ ͓̼̬̺̼̕H͖̹̯̻͠ͅͅE̫͈͓̝̮̘̲L̹̩P̛̣̼!̠!̢̯̮ ̗̺̘͚̺G̯̤͔̞̝̖O͎̮̱̘̩̹T̮̟̭̝̥͟ ͇̠̲͙̝͔IT?͞!"̺͝ _ **

 

Indigo was shouting at the top of his lungs in that freaky voice again and everyone around the group was staring in their direction once more.

Why couldn't things ever work the way he wished? Oh yeah, because it was his way. His way was virtually designed to fail and never succeed even once. He stormed away without another word, sweat beading all over his head.

He's had enough of these suggestions surrounding him with every step he took. Everyone stared at him, unsure of what to do.

Monika was just shocked. Sayori stood there, quaking in her boots. Natsuki's eyes were screwed shut, and Yuri was flat out intimidated.

"We'd better follow him," Sayori declared. The other agreed without hesitation.

 _Yeah, follow him,_ Natuski thought, feeling more or less resentful than sympathetic.

_Follow a mentally unstable christain with a dead Father who actually had good intentions._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yep, no lame ass excuses for this being late. I was just lazy like a jackass. No more overexaggerations. My bad, plain and simple. I promise to all of you lovely people that this will not become a habit.


	13. Anew

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This feels like Dragon Ball GT or the Alfeim arc of Sword Art Online; an unnecessary addition to a genius's piece of modern art. You get me?

_So he..._

 

_...Lives...?_

 

_...How?_

 

_How is it so difficult to be a̛͉̲ͮͯ̓ͨ͛͞l̛̲͎͒ͥͤ́͠ơ̪͉ͩ͛̿̽͂͘n̸̤̥͓ͮ̍͛͒͘͝e̵̛̦̙̳̖̩̜͓̼͂̾̉?̶̥̲̎_

 

_How is it so so easy to be accompanied?_

 

_How is it that there are individuals willing to assist those who have **S̴͎͖̠͇͇͜͜͞I̷̤̜̥̗̖̻͈͈̮̪̪͝͝͠N͉̙̼̭̯̗̳͓̘̰͖͇̗̮͍͟͢͠ͅN̴̶̷҉͖̟͎̗̟͙̲̦̰̹̝E̟̺͙̗͙̞̬̺͚͔̮͜͞D̷̞͕̪͎̲̣̯̫̖͞**?̶̨͇̦̤̩̗̼̻̟̜̫̟̳̺̱̦̠̻͘_

 

_No, that is not at all what I should be asking myself._

 

_How about..._

 

_...Why?_

 

_Why do humans h҉̡̼̟͈̠̟̖̦͘ṳr̸̭͉̺t̴̟̙͟?͖͈̟͝_

 

_Why do humans h҉̧̼͕̼̮̮̬͢ͅu̞̗̤̥͎͓̞̗r͏̪̼͎̪̳t̷̙͍̰͈͡ ̼̫͚̖͜͞ę̠a̴̪̗͇̺̬̘c̰̱̗̘͙h̢͍͔̥͓̰͠ ̠̭͍ͅo̸̴̰͉͕̫͕̥͡t͙̙̯̥͕̭̪̩̼h̛̲̟͍͚͈͜e͎̼̬͜r̢҉̠̖?̨̡̮̘̱͉͙͚̙͓_

 

_Why do they hurt each other and later attempt to right was done wrong?_

_Or maybe..._

 

_...What?_

 

_What is the motive for į̶̸͠m̸̕p̸̛r̛̕͡í̸̧́s̷̨̛͠͠o̸͜͠ǹ̴̡i̕҉͞n҉̕͜g҉̧́͘͡ those who have not wronged?_

 

_For what reason do mortal beings seek impossible goals such as p̨̯̪̖̼̳ͅͅo̶̧̭̳̬̫̲w̫̬͔͓e̢͙̩r͎̺̟ ̡̭̺̲͓̠̜̭̕a̴̮̩̙̜ṋ̴̟̀d̴̛̜̙̩̻̰͈̠̖ͅ ̢̹̙̫̬ͅr̵̨̳̱͉͈̯͘é̵̗̫͚̫͘s̫̘̭̪̬͈̠ͅp̨̤͕͓͇̯̺̣ę͇͈̭͉̣͞c̢͖͔͕̗̞̼̼̙ṱ̲̹͉̤̗͔̦̜?̗̭̯͍̻_

 

_What does it mean to be given p̨̯̪̖̼̳ͅͅo̶̧̭̳̬̫̲w̫̬͔͓e̢͙̩r͎̺̟ ̡̭̺̲͓̠̜̭̕a̴̮̩̙̜ṋ̴̟̀d̴̛̜̙̩̻̰͈̠̖ͅ ̢̹̙̫̬ͅr̵̨̳̱͉͈̯͘é̵̗̫͚̫͘s̫̘̭̪̬͈̠ͅp̨̤͕͓͇̯̺̣ę͇͈̭͉̣͞c̢͖͔͕̗̞̼̼̙ṱ̲̹͉̤̗͔̦̜?̗̭̯͍̻_

 

 

_..._

 

_Nothing..._

 

_Respect is merely a term used to depict a person's į҉̟͖̞ͅṉ̼s͏̬̟̳͙͓̘̣͔͜e͓̫͉̳͝͞c̢҉̶͕̱̬ư̝̭̖̱͈͘͡r̰̹͝͠i̼̹̜̞͟͟͝ͅͅt̶̺̳̭̱̜͚i̗͎̳͔͈̞̫̤̕e̺̘s̮̺͉̜̺.̴̸͍̱̭̼̘̗_

 

_Power is nothing more than an u͟҉̵͍̜̣̜͖̣̠̮̠̳͕̺͍̖̤̩n̥͍͉̩̙̠̺̠̹̯̳͢͠r̸̫͉̞͎̱͙̲̣̩̘͇͖͍͕̦̣̝̦͘͟͠è̩̬̲̻̲̥̪͍̹̗̻͙̤͟a҉̷̡̘̜̘̹̲̗̜͉̬̠̱l̸̤͇̪̗͢͞i̸͎͙̳̥͍͝s̤̦̙̟̤̳̯͙͉̀͠t̨̕͏̼̖̼̹͕̙͓̼̭̼i̸̸̢̧͕̝̫͉̙̺̰̫̬͎̦͉͓̯̹͎̱̭͠c̗̦̲̪̝̗̗̙̱̺̭̩̪͕̫̻͠ ͟͏̸̟̙͚̱̹̥̞͙̖̖͎̜͙͚͔͉̲͝à̷̶͏͕̖̫̖̳̖̞̬̺̫̠̬̲̠̮̟͉m̶͘͘͏͈̻̤̬̣͚̗̱̞̘̯̺̜͉͙͚̻b͏̢̪̬͍̬̝̳̥̣͙̘̳i̲͈͖͍͇̯̩̰͓̹̯̬̤̮͡͞t̪̜̠̤̖̺̘̪̰̪̞̮̮̪̰͎̫͇́͢͜i̸̧͙͚͍͎̜͠͠o҉̸̧͇̗̰̺̟͖͙͇͉͕͢n̸̵̵͖̞̤͓̣̩͕̱̻̯͘͡ͅ_

 

_There is no **GOD.**_

 

_**There is no PEACE.** _

 

_**No serenity.** _

 

_**No exits.**_

 

_At least, not in this h̷̕͢ư͞m̧͞ili̸͜a̧t̵e̡d̀́ ̷̡̨li҉̴̕f̧e.͟.̀͘.͞͝_

 

_**My life has been nothing but**  T͌̎͆ͬ͏͖̱͚͍̮̮͚͓̦̖͜ͅͅO̷̵̵̱̺̼̣͓̩͙̊ͩ́̓̑̊̏ͪͥ̔͂̋̈̀͝R̺͖͖͓̗͓͖͎͖̙̞̥̝ͫͧͨ̓̇͑͑̿ͩ̚͡T̛̰͇̞̦̰̜͛̀̾̎̃̄̽̀͠U̴̥̰̮͉̣̦̗͇̒̅͆ͥ̿ͥͮ̔͛̇͛̽̈̑̉̚͘͢͢ͅR͊͛͂҉̵̢̯̣̼̝̙͖̞̹͜ͅË͛̃͒͂͐ͮͫ̌̄ͤ̍̓͐̎ͥͦ̋̐҉̵̢͔̦̺͎̠̙̫̲͎̟͖̲ **and**  E͂ͣͧ͂̄͑ͩͦͤ̌̒̾ͬ͒̾̀͗͒ͣ͝͏̛͕̭̝̞͔N̸̴̶͓̜̝̲͙̪̰̭͔̝̣̻͓̜͓ͩ̋̓͢͡D̃ͫ͊̊͆̓ͫͮ͐҉̸̪͓̣̮̼͉̳̗̹͖̞̤͍̰̥͉͝L̵̛͔̦͇̹͍̰̲̭̇̑̐̉́͞Ȇ̬̭̗̬͎̖̦̻̠͕̠͎̣̟ͮ̐̓͆̈̅̓͋͋͊̿̑̒͘͘͜S̹̫̳̜͚̠͔͚̲͕͓̪̏͊̊ͬ̈́̀͞S̨̾͐̈́͒̃̒͂ͮ̾̇ͬ̇̑ͫ̚̕͢҉̭̻̣̲̫͞ͅ ̵̢̧̨̼̝̺̘͚̟̼̍͐̽͋̂ͣ̔ͣ̒͌ͮ̓͌ͧ̀̄̒̂ͥH̸͂͑͑̅ͬ̊̎̓̈̌̎͜҉̩̗̮̝̭̩̩͙̱̩̱̼̞̘̤͟ͅȨ̤̞͖̼͍̼͍̼͇͙̝̙͚̳̙̍͒ͮ͛̄̍̆̃̃̅͠L̶̶̮̲͍̦̜̜͙̫̞̠̹͉̺͙̱̏̿̅̆͊̇ͫ̈́ͩ́ͨ́̆ͬ̋͘ͅL̙͖̩̩̋ͧͧ̈̽̑ͭ̏̚͘͢!̗̭̯̞̥͖͔͔̩͔̤͉͖ͬ̉̾̐̈ͪ̊ͮͥ̑̓͘͟͟͡_

 

_*Inhale*_

 

_*Exhale*_

 

_Regardless, that aggravating peasant will guide me to my light._

 

_So that I may finally rid myself of these put̀r͜i̷d̴ mo̶uth b̵r̷eat͞he͢r̵s̢._

 

_True justice..._

 

_True **L̴͜Í̷̶̸̸B̶̶È̢̧͠R͢͏͝Ą̛͘͘͡T̢͜͠I҉̶̷͝O̧͜͜͢͝N͜͟.̡͞.̕͢͞.̛́͠**_

 

_Is at hand!_

 

_These... **pigs** don't know anything yet... but **they...**_

 

** Ț̵̥͖̙̖͖̺̭̣̟̮̿̌͋̊̓͛̋̅͊ͅH̐̉̇̑͊͏͏̻͙͓̥͖̜͕͓̯̖̭̟͙̞̯̣̥͍̦Ḛ̸̛̛̖̮͎̰̪̖̲͖͙̫͕̭̫̯̟̪͇̞̌̽̇̒͢Y̢̨̜̳͚̬̻̞̺̠̮̖̱͍̫̤̘̯͗ͥ̀̈ͤ͊͑̀̚͝ **

 

_** W͇̬̙̼̖̣͇̦̤̟̮͇̫̮͔̉̾̽͊̾ͥͬ͂̉ͦ͑͘͜Ȉ̷̋̈́ͫͤ͑̕͘͏̭̹̼̙̣̤̣͚̹͔͉̖̣̘̝̣̥ͅḼ̛̖̠̤̭̪̖̦̂ͦ̈ͩ͊ͬ̓̈̄͠͠L̽ͧ̿̒͑̆̈ͨͦ̈̂͛̈ͮ̽̍́̉͠͠҉͏̛̞̳̺͔͈̣͈̲͈̲̤̣̘̹̖͇̥ͅ ** _

 

** K̨̢̭̰̟̫̺̝̤̘͇̱̝̼͓͚ͤ̌̐ͩ̆̇̆̏̏͛͒́̐ͨͪͦͦ͠͞ͅͅN̢̫̟̫͇̞̱̻̠̫̮̻͓ͭ̎͆͋ͪ̐ͦ̌̀̋̈̕ͅƠͣ̇ͭ͌ͬ̑̋͑͢͏̛̝̩ͅW̶̨̯̫̝̹͙͔̻͙͕͉̍͌̇ͯ̆͑̅ͤͨ̿͜.̨̹̳̟̙̳̹̫̻͙͍͔̅ͥͯ́̔̒ͥ̂͘͢͡ͅ.̴̄ͦͨ̎̊͒̽̒͆̆̊ͯ͌́͏̧̱̬̗͈͖̙̘̫̲̤̤̞̠̩̺͉͎.͑ͦ̏҉͈̺̩̘͓̟̪̰̟̟̺̞͖͓̖̭̕͜͝ͅͅ!̷̶̵̜̤̗̼͍̹͔̝͎͇̖̰̭͍̞̹̬̔̈́̔̊̏͢͞ **

 

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

 

"Damnit all! Just... damnit all!"

Indigo exhaled, anger seething throughout his body. Fuck, why was he one of the few who survived that day? If he had died with his Father, none of this would have happened.

He finally managed to exit the hospital through the front automatic doors after several minutes worth of convincing security officers that he was 'fine'. But, inside, he was terrifyingly livid with what just happened. Why couldn't his Mother keep her mouth shut for just a few months longer?

He couldn't be mad her forever, though. He knew it was bound to happen, no matter what time it was or where they were. He just didn't figure it would be this soon. He should have, but he didn't.

He heard the rumble of five people pacing towards him from behind. 

Welp, shit. No convenient getaway taxi with Ottis behind the wheel in sight this time around.

Why couldn't people leave him alone?

In fact, why did he try to talk to Yuri the night before? What a waste of everyone's time.

With Monika leading the squad, the five worried women spotted Indigo as he rested his head against a streetlight sitting next the entrance roadway. He looked all kinds of miserable. It disgusted Yuri, Sayori and Mrs. Kapel that he was now stuck in this state of mind. Nat and Moni just remained appalled by this.

They all found themselves rushing to his aid. Before they got close, however, Indigo whipped around with his arms stretched forward and his hands wide open.

"Please! Stay away! I'm sorry that I interrupted your lives, alright?!"

Everyone halted as soon as they saw the distress in his eyes. The tears in Indy's eyes haven't stopped since he left that room. This left the pinkette pondering.

_Interrupted? No, no, no, that's not what he did._

That's what the pinkette was thinking. She felt genuinely sorry for the broken bastard, knowing exactly how he felt. Losing a relative can be very hard for anyone. However, that wasn't exactly the number one topic circling Natsuki's mind.

All of her questions before have been answered back inside the hospital. All but one, that is:

_Why did Indigo proceed to sexually abuse Yuri if he was feeling so unwanted?_

Although she wanted an answer to that unsolved mystery, she couldn't just stare into space about it. She'd have to ask later when it's more appropriate.

Monika stepped forward. She wanted to hug him, no joke.

She, being the wise, selfless woman she is, she could hardly stand watching someone in this state. She walked up to Indigo, who blankly directed his arms toward the brunette, telling her to stop where she was.

She didn't.

She gently embraced him, hoping to comfort him somehow. She tightly wrapped one hand around his waist and placed her hand on top of his head to stroke his frizzy dark chocolate hair.

She knew this mental illness all too well;

 

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  
****

Also known as **PTSD**.

A disorder in which a person has difficulty recovering after experiencing or witnessing a terrifying event.

Some effects of **PTSD** include agitation, irritability, hostility, hypervigilance, self-destructive behavior, or social isolation.

 

Similar to Sayori's Clinical Depression, but only more serious by a small margin.

If this guy was suffering from the same damn issues her wife did in their high school years, she'd do anything to ensure his safety. The thought of a person's will to live slowly weathering because they lost a loved one was so fucking sickening. Monika quivered with anticipation.

Indigo was shocked... shocked and amazed. No one had ever done this before. Nobody in his life ever hugged him aside from his family. Usually, _he_ hugged _other people,_ intensifying the awkwardness of the moment. How curious. These people aren't going to leave him alone, are they?

Sayori and the others stood there, hearts barely managing to stay in one piece. Indy's Mother proceeded to talk with him.

"Es wird alles gut, mein Sohn." (It's gonna be okay, my son.)

Indigo sighed. He felt rather hesitate to reply, which was most likely because he was still annoyed by the fact that she said things behind his back.

So, he just replied, "Was hast du ihnen sonst noch gesagt...?" (What else did you tell them...?), with a stony expression.

His Mother had never felt so guilty since her husband's demise. She could easily detect the faint aggression on his face. He was clearly upset with her.

She chose to stay silent for the umpteenth time. Indigo slowly pushed Monika away from him and faced his Mother with a look of disappointment.

"Ja wirklich?" (Really?)

Silence. Indy's Mom just stood there in shame.

"Nun, das ist ziemlich amüsant. Du erzählst ihnen von meinem Vater, doch versteckst du die Folgen?" (Well, that's rather amusing. You tell them about my Dad, yet you hide the aftermath?)

Perhaps Indigo would never truly understand this Mother of his. The way he saw things, if you're gonna spill the beans, you might as well shake out what's left in the can.

His Mother was always like this ever since her loss. Quiet and unsure of what to say.

Monika spoke up a little, trying to keep her composure. She could feel the pain transfer from Indigo's body to herself. It felt so cold. So lonely and nocuous. Yet, so indescribable. "We know it can be hard for you, 'Indigo'. We know." She stopped for a moment. "But, that doesn't mean we know _how_ hard it is."

_Must I really force myself to lend an ear for this false sympathy,_ he quizzed, taking a seat in the grass near the road passing the facility.

Indigo's body temperature was rising rapidly. He was feeling more mad about the imbecilic acts he pulled that put him in this precarious spot.

One way or another, he was stuck here with no way out. No point in trying to run away. No exits in sight.

"Can we have a moment, Mrs. Kap... Kappel, sorry. Please?" Natsuki turned to the German blonde for permission.

"But--"

"Please."

Mrs. Kappel sighed and said, "Fine," before walking over to the nearest metal bench and plopping down in disgruntlement.

Natsuki put her hands on her hips and spoke. "Listen, I know how you feel. Trust me, I can relate. Actually, I'm sure we can all relate in some fashion. I mean, my Daddy died four years back."

This got Indy's attention. He turned to face the pinkette, still bearing that glumness in his eyes.

"But, the thing is... he was an asshole. An asshole who abused me, treated me like the beer cans he drank dry and smashed against the ground. He even tried to... rape me..."

This was a new feature. Yuri was surprised by what she was hearing. Usually, her girlfriend kept that sadistic shit under wraps. "What happens in the past stays in the past," as she always said to reassure herself whenever something unfortunate happened. The jasmine didn't have any objections to this newfound courage, though.

"My Father was nothing compared to yours," she continued. "You had a gift: a parent who cares." Indigo was standing up straight as an arrow now.

Having an alcoholic rapist for a Father sounded _far_ worse than living a life full of regrets.

Indy was ashamed of himself once again. Ashamed of deprecating himself when someone else was suffering much more than he was.

**Another sin.**

"But I've managed to move on from that old life. You get what I'm saying?"

Sayori saw this as her chance to converse.

"I especially know how this man feels," she proceeded, turning to the girls as Indigo stood right behind her. "We're best friends, y'know. I know it can be hard to fight depression. Been there, done that."

"But, hey, look at me now! I'm still kicking. Why? No, not why; how?"

_Heh, lemme guess, the power of friendship?_

"It's because I accepted the help of others." Yep, he called it.

"But it was also because that gorgeous goddess of love right there was the one who offered it in the first place." Sayori pat her wife on her curvy back with a confident smirk. "I accepted the help of a loved one, which set my life straight again!"

Monika eyed the purple haired girl to say something.

Why her, Dear God why her?She was very fluent with her words. She was just... challenged with motivational speech.

"Well... as you already know, I used to... **cut** myself because I... I enjoyed it. It gave me an exotic feeling of euphoria. It was a severe problem that I had back then."

Indy already knew about that. He didn't pay it much attention, though like the selfish jackass he was. He figured the habit would just go away. He was, indubitably, dead wrong.

"But, thanks to my girlfriend here, I managed to convince myself to see a therapist and resolve my conflicts." Yuri walked up next to the pinky and petted her adorable little head with her leftie, causing the munchkin to blush a little.

Why were these strangers willing to help a sinner? Why go through the pointless effort of mending something that can't be repaired? 

Indigo never knew how easy it could be to move on from a tarnished life and live a new, happy one. But, that factor strengthened his concern. His past was what made him himself. He couldn't forget those dark times if he tried.

Monika sensed Indigo's unease drifting away, even though it was fading at a super sluggish rate.  _It's a start,_ she thought.

"It's true, reflecting upon your past can be educational," said Monika. "However, you can't just be focused on your past twenty-four-seven. It's not healthy. Not at all."

Indigo didn't feel right. _This_ didn't feel right. He wanted it to, but it wouldn't.

"So, please, let us help a friend in need."

_Friend?_

He felt his stomach twist and turn violently. To think that these infidels would even think of helping him. He could never bring himself to accept it from anyone for some reason. He thought about it for a solid while before Mrs. Kappel chose to speak up.

"Komm schon. Tu es für deinen Vater." (Come on. Do it for your Father.), said Mrs. Kappel, who quickly grew tired of watching the conversation instead of hearing.

Oh, to Hades with it all. If these stubborn goof balls aren't going to leave him alone, then there's no point in delaying the inevitable.

 

"Alright, alright! Fine, I'll let you girls do your thing."

 

Yuri sighed with relief as she heard those words. She remembered very well what he did, but she was was still more than willing to help.

Nobody deserves to die no matter what they did back then, unless their actions are excessively diabolical. At least, that's what the jasmine lover believed.

Natsuki felt happy. Happy for Yuri's happiness.

Then she remembered something. A vital something.

She stuck both hands in her pockets and felt around for that vital something.

The tiny box was still in her back pocket, thank God. Should she give away its contents now?

No, out of the question. Not at a time like this.

Not like this.

She would have to wait until Indy has fully regained his sanity.

 

*Sigh* _Damnit, we've got a long way to go._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm taking a break. I'll be sure to upload the next chapter on September 2nd. It'll be smooth sailing from there, I promise! Until then, stay frosty, stay hydrated, stay whatever you chose! Love y'all!
> 
> EDIT: I meant NOVEMBER 2nd! God damn I have problems if it took me 3 days to recognize my errors!!


	14. Better?

_"Hey! Dino, you filthy bastard!"_

_"You talkin' to me, Indy?"_

_"You heard me! Your sacrilegious excuse for advice only sent my life further down the god-forsaken drain than it already is!"_

_"Tch. What, you really expected that tactic to work right off the bat? You really are stupid. You need patience for sex to work."_

_"Don't tell me how to make something worse! Do you even understand how humiliating this is? For me AND Yuri?"_

_"That's your fault, dumbass."_

_"You've been lying to me this whole time!_

_"Yeah? Well, this is what you get. Look at you now. This is exactly what happens to people who are stupid and naive like you are."_

_*Sigh* "You're right. You're right. You're absolutely right. I almost died yesterday because I trusted you, a ludicrous manipulator, of all people!"_

_"Hey, it's not my fault you wanted a psycho bitch for a girlfriend, is it--"_

_*CRACK*_

_"GAAAGH!!"_

_"Don't. you. D̵A̶̵͟R̀͝͞E.̸̡ insult her like that again, or else that nose won't be the only thing that's broken. Got it?"_

_"B-Blood? You made me bleed...!"_

_"Heh, you really do have feelings for that furry plum--"_

_*POW*_

_"Urgh!"_

_"Hahaha! Looks like you also have a death wish!"_

_"Shank 'em, boys!"_

**_"COME ON!!"_ **

_**"́͢I̷͘ ͡W̸͜ILL̶͠ ͏́P̸UR͏̡G̛E͢ ̡A̛͘̕L̵L OF̶̶͘ ̵YOU̕͟R͞͏ A̡͏BH҉Ǫ͢R͏̧҉R͞E͘N̶̡T ̢SOU̕͢͠L͢͜S!̴͝!̛"̸** _

****

* * *

 

 _Never again,_ Indigo thought.

 

Never again would he trust someone he didn't know on a real, personal level. He learned that lesson the hard way.

Never again would he socialize with unknown faces after that frenzy. Indigo was barely lucky enough to make out of that mess in one piece, let alone alive.

Those guys that followed Dino's commands were maliciously ruthless. It scared Inidgo when he was much younger, but not anymore.

His 'buddy' wasn't wrong, though. He did deserve the permanent scar after putting his trust in a perverted transfer student/gang leader from America.

That's what happens when you open up and let yourself be vulnerable on purpose. You wind up losing nearly all of your previous senses and knowledge alike.

You lose friends, you lose your privileges.

You lose a nostalgic part of yourself. 

To be fair, learning a new thing or two isn't a bad thing. It just depends on what that new information is.

Indigo chose to keep his own information tightly locked within his mind, hoping that he could just die alone without anyone later feeling sadness and grief or even pleasure. That plan, somehow, had failed miserably. All because he couldn't just be smart for once and keep his distance.

But, of course, he wasn't the brightest buster around the block, and so he just _had_ to burst his ex-girlfriend's bubble. Now he was stuck with a bunch of girls who won't let him out their sight as they visit his house, hoping to find a solution to his crisis. It felt slightly weird for some reason. He felt like a young, mindless brat all over again. Stupid. Stupid!

And this whole damn schtick happened within a matter of two days. That right there is a problem worth noting.

He stared out the passenger seat window of his Mother's van. He looked in the mirror on his side to see a dark green car carrying Sayori and Monika following them.

Man. Indigo had his own driver's license. He just didn't have enough of his own money to buy a working car and his Mother didn't let him drive too often primarily because of current mental state.

Yuri and her girlfriend sat in the back seats with their traps shut as if they were criminals in a police department. Probably wanted to save the idle conversation for where it's safe to talk freely.

As Ms. Kapelle's van pulled into the driveway in front of the tropically painted house, Indigo tried to think of a conversation starter. If Indigo is going to have visitors under his establishment, he might as well interact with them.

 _Speak only when you're spoken to, and everything will blow over,_ said the voice in his twisted head.

Indigo agreed. As long as he remained focused and acted it all out, the girls would eventually leave him alone. Not a genius plan, but a plan nonetheless. Oh, who was he kidding? Enough with the 'plan' shit. There's always going to be a compromising hole in it when _Indigo's_ making it.

It truly was a shame that Yokushio's cells have sadly become... diluted within his son over the years.

_I really am sorry for lacking common sense, Father._

There was no way out whether he liked it or not. He just had to accept it, simple enough.

"You okay," asked Yuri. Indy woke up from his trace. "Yeah. I'm fine."

"Hey, this house doesn't look that bad," Natsuki complimented with a grin, practically leaping out of Ms. Kapelle's van. Indy admitted that this place sure was, in fact, a beauty. He enjoyed having this expressive place as a home.

However, he didn't really like the fact that it brought so much unwanted attention. So many people to talk to, so little time.

Monika's car pulled in as well, stopping a few feet from the van occupying the first half of the space. The couple got out and gawked at the radiant house in amusement.

"So pretty," Sayori said, gazing at the vibrant colors. Jeez, this was a little unexpected. What Indy anticipated was for these girls to be at least a little more nonchalant or less enthusiastic about it. He looked at Yuri, who smiled at the repaint.

This place wasn't like this at all when she and Indigo first met. It was old, moist, and had several paint chips. Nice to see they managed to fix things up as the years passed.

"You all really like it," Indigo questioned.

"It's unique," Monika answered. She was also impressed by the vibrant exterior view. The group of misfits made their way inside the house after a few more seconds of inspection.

The interior of the house wasn't nearly as visually appealing as the outside, but it was certainly neat and tidy enough to make up for that. The marble floor glistened in the lights above, the walls were completely spotless, and the ceiling didn't have holes in it anymore. The girls were surprised the inside wasn't based on a beach resort like the outside.

As Ms. Kapelle proceeded to give everyone an inside-out tour, Monika saw something in the corner of her eye and turned. "You coming, Moni," Sayori asked.

"I'll be there. Gimme a moment to look around." The brunette stepped towards the object as the others moved outside to the backyard.

A black and white photo of a couple and their son stood up on the small table next to the wall where the TV was hung up. Monika carefully picked it up.

It the picture stood Indigo's Mom, who was holding an adorable baby Indy, and her husband. They all seemed so happy together.

In the bottom right corner, there was a name written in cursive:

 

_ Happy Birthday to Indigo M.C. Kapelle. _

_ September 29th, 1993 _

 

"Hey, please leave that photo alone," Indigo scolded from behind. "You'll break it or something."

"Sorry!"

"You're fine, really. I just love these pictures so much. I'm letting anyone ruin them."

Monika understood. She always defended the things she loved, even though she was a little too smart about her oppositions. She was still a little bit to this day, too. Some things never change no matter what you do, huh?

In any case, this actually seemed like an opportune moment for her to ask this guy some questions.

"Hey, I actually have a few questions for you," Moni proposed. Indigo didn't really approve. "I don't want to talk about it."

However, Monika was a persistent girl. She looked at Indy with those serious emerald eyes of hers. "Please," she continued. "We really want to help."

"That's what people always say, though," Indigo scoffed. "You really think that everything will be 'just fine' if I just talk to a mere acquaintance?" Monika knew what he was saying. Been there, done that. She could relate to his aggressions. In fact, she was probably the most relatable to this guy out of everyone in her gang, no bragging intended.

Monika just looked at him. She had no choice but to compromise. "I promise I won't say anything. Plus, to make you feel better, you don't have to say anything about your Father." That actually sounded like a tolerable deal. Indigo decided to agree. For now.

"Promise?"

Monika nodded and crossed her heart.

"Fine. Ask away then."

again with the Q&A bullshit. Still, this was also bound to happen, considering this girl belonged to his unsuspecting best friend. The brunette took a seat on the living room couch. Indy stretched, plopped onto an oppositely placed chair and slouched back carelessly.

"Now, I'm not gonna ask anything about your Father, but I do want to know some other things."

"Like what?"

"How about, for example, what caused you to be in this life?"

"Listen, I'm sorry that I assaulted Yuri. I really am. I was just... I just..." God, this wasn't easy, for Monika or for him. "I just stopped caring." Monika provided a perplexed look. "How so?"

"Well, after Father's untimely demise, I saw Yuri in a classroom at some point during my Junior year. Through my eyes, she was like an angel; So knowledgeable, so delicate!"

True.

"Am I crossing the line or...?"

"No, no, by all means, keep going," Monika laughed. "Natsuki's the one who's gonna beat you up. And trust me, she can really kick some ass." Indigo couldn't help but briefly snicker himself. Interesting.

"Moving on, it was love at first sight for me. I left my nature trail, revealed myself to her, the rest you already know, I imagine."

"Why did you do it though," Monika asked as her curiosity got the best of her. Indigo held his breath. Answering this one was a must, even if the answer was completely screwed up. Indigo stuttered and looked down in shame as he spoke.

"Well... I... b-believed that... if I had a person I could place my trust in, everything would be alright. As you can tell, I was beyond incorrect. You see, even though I had Yuri temporarily supporting me, my Father's death left a much more severe impact on my view of life than it does today. Thus, my wretched attempts to drink myself to death began. Because of that, I stopped caring about what would happen, made an ass of myself, spilled the beans, got into a fight, and ran away to Shibuya like a yellow bellied coward."

Indy's eyes slammed shut like a clam shell. He thought for sure this girl wouldn't dare pull her punches this time.

But he didn't feel anything hit him. Why?

Indigo opened his amber eyes. Moni simply looked at him with a blank expression.

"I'm sure your Mother will underst--"

"No. She won't." Indigo straightened up and put the 'serious' mask back on. Moni knew from that look that he wasn't messing around. He was speaking the truth.

"Why do you live with your Mother, anyway."

"Oh, that. Back then, I was having difficulties with my emotions as well as my drunken antics since that incident with Yuri. My Mother heard the news and took me under her wing. I'm fully capable of caring for myself. She's just letting me stay here for mentally supportive reasons."

_Nice to know he isn't a man-child._

"By the way, I never actually received your name," Indigo said after a few moments of silence. The brunette blinked. "Oh, It's Monika. Monika Amano."

What an interesting name. "And who's the pinkie?"

"Natsuki Kizumi. Just call her Natsuki. She prefers casual attention over formal."

Huh.

"--show you his room."

The screen doors to the outside reopened and in came the rest of the gang. Sayori was the first to see the indoor conversation. She was more enthusiastic than curious. "Hey, whatcha doin', lovebugs," she quizzed. Monika just shrugged and said nothing.

Sayo was easily distracted as Indigo stood up. "Mother just said she'd show you my room, right?" The trio replied with a synchronized "Yes."

"My apologies but I--"

"Please, no 'buts', okay," Yuri persisted. "We want to help you and the only way we can do that is if you expand your social bubble."

Indigo grunted in disbelief. There were several different ways they could understand him. Barging into his room wasn't one of them. However, the majority ruled against his vote, so he had little choice.

He walked down a dim hallway, out of the girls' sight. They quickly pursued him. Hopefully he didn't have a self destructive trick up his sleeve.

The hallway suddenly lit up like a Christmas Tree with Indy at the end of it, his thumb nervously tapping the switch. He opened a door with a sign that said 'God Bless Ye' nailed to it.

 

"Beware. For you are entering a sinner's coup."

"Oh, can it with the 'sin' shit, please. You did nothing wrong!"

"I beg to differ, Ms. Kizumi."

"Please, just call me Natsuki."

"Right... Sorry."

 

The inside of Indigo's room was actually very... small and basic; normal and unchanged.

A TV set sat on a table at the front wall, the clothing dresser at the left side wall with a smoothed out bed laying right next to it, and a working desk loaded with papers stood next to the entrance door. Pretty simplistic set up for a Christian. There wasn't even a cross in sight.

The only paradox of this room was the large picture of every member of Yokushio Multicultural Church standing side by side to each other.

"Yeah. I told you to beware," Indigo breathed.

Natsuki wasn't completely convinced. "You're kidding. You seriously have no technology in this room aside from that TV right there?"

"Indeed. I sold my stuff. Ever since the fire, I've refrained from using technology unless I need to know legitimately important information. A major downgrade, but it was worth the sacrifice." Sayori was amazed. This man grew up **real** quick. Actually, no. There's no way he could have. Guys like Indy never change in terms of passion.

"After all," Indigo added. "I'm twenty-one with a difficult job. I can't afford to waste my time on such things."

Then the straw-blondy noticed something sticking out from under the bed. It had a curvy edge and was colored with a light tone of tan. It also had several silver pieces sticking out like...

Like the tuning pegs on the head of a guitar!

"Is that your guitar, Indy," Sayo pointed out. She remembered the days before the church fire when Indigo seeked to be a musical artist when he grew up.

"W-What are you talking about?"

"This thing right he--"

"Unhand that instrument at once!"

Sayori jumped back, surprised by his reaction. Indigo immediately made up for that. "My apologies. I just don't want my property to be damaged."

Yuri was intrigued by Indigo's guitar. He never said a word about it when they were hooked up. She decided to join the conversation. "Hey, Indy? Since you have a guitar, is it possible that you can play something? Anything at all?"

Indigo pulled the guitar out from underneath the bed and sat down on said bed, plucking each string with his thumb. As he did that, Sayori also saw Indy's gaming systems hidden in the shadows beneath.

_Oh, Indy, you goofball._

She knew this whole 'refrain from tech' spiel was too good to be true.

"Sorry, no. I'm too rusty. Plus, I threw away all of those sheets with the notes on them."

"Aw, that's too bad," Sayo groaned. "Why?"

"Because they were taking up too much needed space for me to work!"

"So what? You could've just placed them somewhere else."

"I was greatly limited on space to complete my tasks and..." His voice trailed off as he recollected something about those sheets. He threw all of them away, that was for sure.

All but one. Hmm...

"Actually," Indy began. "I do believe that there is at least one sheet that I still have."

Sayori let out a geeky scream and squeezed Indigo, who would find himself unable to breath well. Indigo pulled himself back to catch his breath. Sayori couldn't help herself. She just loved her best friend's natural talent.

Monika's right eye twitched. There was literally no reason. It just did. How strange.

"Does that mean you can play?"

Indigo took a deep breath. "So be it. I shall play for you lot. Don't expect me to be like I was, though."

"And I'll cook us something for dinner while you're at it," Natsuki declared. Indigo pleaded her not to. "Please don't. You'll be wasting your time if you're doing it for me too."

"As if!"

The other girls smiled with satisfaction. Things seemed to be normal again. For now, at least.

 

 

* * *

 

 

L͢҉͍͓̰͕̳̘̣e̢̢̬̼̱ṱ̸̟'̺̱̘s͜҉̰̘̦̥͖̥̦ ̴̵̛̤̩s̳̰̥̼͙͚̕e̛̱̱̪̝̫͢e͏͓̯̳͠ ͈̥̦̮̙͇̱͝h̷̵̸̻͍͔ͅó̖̝͓ͅẁ͈̹͖͔͈͎͕͙͢ ̬̺̺̮͚͙̗̼f̧̤͔ą̩͉̞͇͕r̡̻͚̻̰̙̝͇̕ ͖̮͖̣͍w̭̤̜͎̰̲͜e̴̦͎͓͎̫ ̧̮̰̪c̴̣̰̫̟̟̼̞a̶̡͕͕̦̲̻͙͎n͏̵͎̥̳ͅ ̧̝͎͘g̲̪e͚̘̝̮̜̭̝̮̤͞t̲ͅ.̶̰̬͚͚͕̭.̸̠̳̻̮̠̩̭̺̀


	15. Sanctuary is Lost (End of Indigo Arc)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An unexpected appearance changes everything that everyone has perceived for ages.

"Wie ist das?" (How is it?)

"I... W... W-What...?"

This exquisiteness.

This succulent taste.

It ruptured Indigo's taste buds. This was the first time in twelve years Indigo sank his teeth into a dish, so divine, it made him crave for more.

How did Ms. Kizumi manage to surpass his Mother? How did she even convince his Mother to sit this one out?

Never mind. It doesn't matter. This culinary ace has managed to create a better meal than his Mother ever made before (aside from her signature Zwiebelkuchen hopefully), even though she had zero experience with foreign foods.

She made Bratwurst for crying out loud and he didn't like meat as much as most people do. Whenever he was hankering for meat, he just bought veggie burgers at the store. Note to self, 'Don't judge a book by its cover'. In fact, just don't do it in general. Ever.

That was what made her so unique. She may specialize in baking specifically, but she had numerous recipes memorized every day. She was easily capable of conjuring them up and even better than the original. That is the symbolism of a true chef.

Indy just sat there, dumbfounded and speechless. His eyes lit up as he turned to the pinky, who had a smirk of confidence. "I take it that you are amazed, Mr. Kapelle?"

She was right on the money. Indy was amazed. He stood up from his chair. This didn't make any sense. How could this pinkie flawlessly perform such an intricate task?

"How did you do it, Ms. Kizumi?" His Mother decided to take a bite herself and her astounded face was priceless. This girl had natural talent! It was like she was born and raised in a restaurant. Ms. Kapelle found herself suspicious as well. "Please! Tell me vat you did," she begged.

Natsuki only made a waved her index finger. "Tsk-tsk, a chef never reveals his or her secrets to anyone. Not even his or her loved ones."

"Blasphemy," Indigo boomed. Natsuki just shrugged her shoulders and laughed.

When everyone was finished with their lunch, Indigo gentlemanly collected the plates and silverware and went over to the kitchen sink to wash them. Natsuki pointed something out.

"Don't forget your end of the bargain," she teased. She couldn't help it. She was genuinely interested in the fact that this man could play a guitar. Hell, if he can play that, he could probably even play one of those badass electric guitars. The pinkie's imagination was expanding by the second.

"As far as I recollect, the sheet is one of my own handmade creations." All the more reason to stay for a little longer. Indigo wasn't all that happy, though. Instead, he had that same ol' face of self doubt. Monika got up and put a hand on his shoulder and said, "You know, I'm capable of playing the piano." It was true. She could play the piano and simultaneously blow away anyone who listened.

"I was originally planning to be a professional musician when I grew up, but I decided to enroll in psychology classes," she stated. Indigo's face brightened up a little. "Really," he quizzed. The brunette nodded with confidence. Now Indy started to feel better. A fellow musician stood right next to him and she was actually encouraging him. An idea flew into his head.

"Perhaps we can make our own band--" and he shot it down instantly. "No. No, It would never be a success. Not at this rate."

"That's what we're here for. To help you. Now, I may not associate myself with religious ideology, but I at least know the biblical line, 'Help Thy Neighbor'."

"Yes, yes. I'm aware of that quote. You certainly are educated."

"Indeed I am," Monika giggled. Indigo partially grinned. Though he had no romantic interest in her, he believed they could have a better relationship than the compulsive one he had with that delicate angel over there petting the pinkie's crafty noggin. Besides, he felt like a different person every time she was near him. Like he could be free as a bird with his thoughts.

Indigo finished working and went to his room to grab the guitar. Ms. Kapelle rubbed her eyes as she stood up from her seat. "Alrighty," she said sleepily. "Everysing seems to be alright here. I'm heading to bed."

_Wow. So soon?_

Sayori looked at the tired Mother and smiled. "Thank you so much for having us over." Ms. Kapelle thanked them as well. She felt much better knowing that there are people in this world who were kind enough to help her son. People who still had their hearts in the right place. She waved and said "Gute Nacht," before leaving to her room.

Sayori smiled. Her backside tickled a bit. It was probably Monika's hand that was slowly going up and down.

 

But no... it didn't feel like her arm at all. The fingers were much more slender, the nails were obviously sharper as they scratched her side, and the skin was far too cold and shriveled. Sayori's teeth were chattering unconsciously.

It was extraordinary; weird and wrong. Sayori shuddered as the curious sensation crawled deliciously up her spine. She found herself too petrified to turn around and see what on earth could be pestering her side.

All of a sudden, she heard a voice. A shrill, hostile, feminine voice driven by nothing but madness. It wasn't loud at all. It was just flat out creepy.

I... can't wait... anymore...

Re... move your... selves.

**N̨O̸̸Ẃ̧.͟**

Sayori flinched at its hellish tone. Monika looked over and saw Sayori's terrified face. What was up with her? She looked like she just saw a puppy get kicked right in front of her.

_Something wrong?_

_Yeah... LOTS of things._

_Like wha--_

Monika felt something freezing in her arm. Then the palms of her hands and the tips of her fingers. Soon enough, every square inch of her torso was overflowing with bitter cold energy. Natsuki and Yuri felt it too. What the shit is this!?

Out of nowhere, they could hear that voice chuckling from somewhere followed by a loud *CRUNCH*. That chuckling quickly turned into uncontrollable laughter. It was coming from Indy's room!

**_Fuck...!_ **

The quadrio raced to his room, hoping that he wasn't hurt. Praying that he was just pulling some prank. But, the problem was that he wasn't. He had nothing to do with creepy shit like this. He was innocent.

The girls bursted into his room and their faces only displayed the horror they felt inside.

There, standing before the lot of them, was Indigo M.C. Kapelle holding his guitar broken in half. But it wasn't the same shy Indigo as the one from a few minutes ago.

This Indigo was in a sitting position on his bed as his face no longer showed any signs of self hatred. The only things written on it were nothing but twisted psychopathy and malicious intention. His whole body was almost completely distorted, pixelated crumbs of dead skin remotely peeling off of him every five seconds like the ashes of burnt wood. Blood was leaking from his eyes, which were covered by strange black pixels.

HELLO... AMANO... OZAKI... D̕͡I̷͞Ḑ̷̀͟ ͜͏Y͜͝O̵̶̡͘͜Ư͘͠͡ ̸͟͞M̧͟͞I̶̧̡̢̛S͝͝S̴͜͠͡͞ ̛҉M̢͠͠E͜͞!̵̕͢͞?̴̛́͠͝

This was not the Indigo that the girls knew before. In fact, it wasn't Indigo at all. An imposter of sorts. What was happening? Why was Indigo looking so creepy? Who was this usurper!? So many things were happening at once. And that voice... It was so familiar. Too familiar. But it sounded so tortured and alone.

_What are you doing to my body!?_

_They have nothing to do with us!_

_Stop!_

_I beg of you!!_

SILENCE... YOU ROB... PEOPLE OF THEIR... CAREFREE LIVES...

AND NOW... P̢͕̝̲̭̺L̪͈̺̞̲É̹͓͙̝A̤̺̘̳̫͕͘͠͞D̡̧̨̮̥̣̰͈ ̴̤͓̞̲̝̫̪̯F̛̫͓̮O̜͎̝̭R̶̙̼̝͔͚̺̀͘ͅ ͖̻͖̩̗̗͈́͝T̳̥̱̥̲̕͡H̗͇̗̦E͎̳̳͚̼͓͈͜M̶̦̭̳̱̝͚̀͘?̡͎͔͔̰

 

"You..." Monika's fists were clenched harder than ever. She was infuriated with this sudden reveal. How dare she show herself again. The figure wobbly stood up.

YES...? SWEET LITTLE SISTER...?

"You... You are the one who ruined my reality," Monika shouted through gritted teeth. Sayori and the others had no idea what was happening. Monika's sister? But why? She seemed so nice. The fact that she was dementing Indy's body only confused the straw-blondy more. Besides, sisters are supposed to cherish each other's lives.

The figure took a step forward. Monika launched herself at the creature, landing a solid kick to its face, knocking it backwards into the TV set which fell over and shattered on the floor.

**"I'll fucking kill you for what you did!!"**

Before she could go for the knockout, however, she felt a sincere hand grab her wrist. "Stop it, Moni," Sayo exclaimed. "If you pick a fight with this thing, you might kill Indigo!" Damnit, she's right. Monika listened to her wife's warning and watched as the usurper recovered from the blow.

SHE IS A SMART GIRL, YOU KNOW...

This cocky bitch was asking for it. Still, Monika had to settle down before she did something risky. She was still pissed off with her sister's return. The brunette proceeded to question passive/aggressively. "What are you doing here, sis?"

OH... NOTHING REALLY... I'M MERELY IDLING AROUND... WHILE YOU...

**L̞̰̟̥͖͞I̷̡̭͉͠V̨̭̥̘͟Ẹ̹̠ ͏͏̖̬̯̮̜́ͅA̻̫̗͈͎̞̣̦ͅ ̻̥̗̭̱H̟̠͚͈̪͉͔͙͈̀͞Á̜̬̘͜P̜̙̞̗̕͝P͓̬̤͞Y̡͇̙̪͖̲͓̞̫ ̷̰̰̞͓̺̬L̫͇͖̳̬̙̲̲̦I̼̝͍͎̝̥F͎̖͜È̡̢͉͍̹ ͈̗͚̲̱̣W̵̶̩͡Í̝̮̗̭͕̖͈͕̮T̨̧͇̹̲̜͠H̡̗͓̝̳̀O͈̣͢U҉̢͔̮͉̭͎͞Ṭ̛̻͓̟̮̲͕͉͡ ̵̹̯̗͈̺̲͚͓͚͡M̜Y̝͙͍͚̪̱ ͙̘͝C̵̛̼̹̻Ó̭̫̙̯͢N̼͓̜͠S̷̻̠̩̠̙͕͓̹̘E̟̝̹͜N̪̝̝̣̰̠̕͡T̴͈̤̮͞!͍̟!̳̼̀**

 

"It's not my fault you chose this path. It's not my fault that you're in this life now--"

B̶͏͍͈͕̭͕͍E̵̢̪̯̪̘͕͔͉̘̲͚̞͈̱͍͙̕ͅ ҉̱̞̯͕̻̙̥͞ͅS̴͏̡͜҉̰̥̬̻̝̰̠̦̦͍͇͇̙͓̺̟ͅI͓͙͇̰̝̜̲͙̘͡L̟̬̘̼̳͍̹̻̮̩̹̀́̕͢͡E̡̩̲̣̖̮͕̪̜̣͚̖̦͟͞͡N̢̨̡̞͖͇̠̼͓͇͔͎̺̣͠ͅT͔̠̜̝̼͓͔̳̟͎̬̲̩̭̻͔́͘͡,̶̵̦̤̩͓̫̖̘̮̲̠̱͉̠͕̮͠ͅ ̷̢̢̠͈͔̲̬͍̪̝̙̗͉͞ͅY̸̕҉͍̦̲̗̠̳̬̖̦̝͇̯̞͍̦̗Ờ̢̯̫̞̱͕̼͈͉̗̳̕͡U̬̜̻̘̬͚̩̱̬̳̺̝̙̝̤̣̺̘͜͞ ̴͉̘̯̳͇̞̖̯S̶̡͘҉̨̹̞͖͕̥͎Ṕ̷͇͈͖͉̮̩̩̝̪̖͔̩̹͉̰̖̙̦̕͢O̥̳͓͖̥̣̤͎͍̟̳̗̕̕͢͡I͞͏̸͓͇̟̩̫̻͓̳̯̬̟̀̀L̸͙͓̘̮̮̗̝̻̺̭̼͘Ę̸̷̠̤̪̹̳̥̗̩̦̺̻͕͔͍͚͔͚̙̕͞D̳͓̟̯͙̠̰͘̕ ̷̧̦̘̹̳̣̦͘͝W̨̺̘͙̳̦͍̹̫̜̺̫͕̩̯͈̣͇̩͜͞I̴̧̨̮̠̣̦͉̪̮̙̦͞T̶̳͓̻͉͓͈̼̼͖͎̮͙̖̻͇̩͘C̯͍̖̼͓̺̣̱͙̕͢͡H̸͔̼̲͇̝̫̦̠̻̯̱͕̪̦͘͝!̵̷̡҉̢̹͉̙̭̞̮̲̣̘̳̯̹!̴͝҉̞̱̩̺͡

 

 

The entire house shook at the force of that scream. Monika stood her ground while the others covered their pained ears. The door behind the group slammed shut, startling the unsuspecting trio behind the brunette. The nightmare fuel straightened itself and faced the empty ceiling.

IF YOU WISH... TO HAVE YOUR QUESTIONS... ANSWERED...

F̷̢̧̨͠O̸̡̢Ļ̸̀L͏̢͘͢͡O̶̵̢͞͝W͠͞.̶̴̛͝.̢͡.̸̀͜ ̷͡M͏͏̶E̷̕͜͠.̧̛

YOU SHALL... BE PURIFIED... IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN...

_No... please, cease this viole--_

Indigo's body began to disintegrate. No, not disintegrate. The usurper... was warping itself!? "No, please! Don't go, Indy!" Sayori's scream was filled with horror and dismay. She couldn't bear to see Indigo leave again "Stay back, Sayo," Monika yelled.

 until it finally disappeared without a trace.

"NO," Sayori shrieked. "INDY!!" But it was too late. His body had vanished.

The girls stood there, dead silent, stunned by what they just witnessed. Natsuki was especially traumatized by this. How could this have happened? Why did it happen?

She stared at the brunette, her eyes filled with malice. "What. was. THAT, Monika!? What's with Indigo? Why the fuck was that... **thing**  in his body!?" She despised being ill-informed.

The other two looked desperately at their friend. Monika sighed and looked down at the floor where Indigo's possessed body once stood. There wasn't even the smallest piece of evidence that her sister was there.

Damn it. She wished she never was.

"THAT. was the monster you never knew. Plain and simple."

"And...?"

*Sigh* "Her real name is... is..."

"Is... what!?"

Monika didn't dare continue. She wasn't afraid of saying that name. She only figured it was unnecessary to drag her friends into a war which they could never escape.

Her lips were permanently sealed. She snapped her left hand fingers. A flash of light blinded everyone.

Then, everything faded to black; dead silence was cast like a spell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And thus marks the conclusion of the Indigo Arc. What, you thought it was one and done? No-sir-ee!
> 
> Don't worry, the next arc won't involve any more new characters. The next chapter will be the beginning of something cataclysmic! I assure you all, you will not be disappointed! Thank you all for the 9 kudos and almost 200 hits! Your contributions are much obliged!
> 
> When will the next arc begin? In all honesty, I really don't know. Either way, this story ain't done-zo yet! Until the next time!


	16. A message to the people who supported this work.

Hello, everyone. Cheeky_Cheelai here. I am sorry to report that I have some bad news for you all.

This work shall be DISCONTINUED.

I know. It's shocking and it sucks.

The plot I had in mind for this project was **absolutely wretched.** I can't possibly even think of typing it.

I fully understand that this sounds completely 'boo-hoo' coming from me and that it isn't very fair to you all. Still, if you were to look at it, I swear you'd immediately be thinking "Well that's load of shit..." 

It's that bad. It completely contradicts Rumbellestiltskin's plot and writing and the timeline of events that transpired in her respective work.

More importantly, this whole "Sunday-Updates" schedule I got has been screwing me over time and time again. It takes a lot of mentality to make things work every week, especially since school's been a thorn in my side lately.

Moving on from the melodrama, I am posting this update as a chapter because I honestly can't think of any other way. Yeah, I'm one of _those_ people.

 

HOWEVER, that does not mean this is truly the end! Instead, I shall make a reboot of this work, whereas everything you'll read will be original conception idealized and written by yours truly!

And when I say that, I mean it'll have little to nothing to do with Rumbellestiltskin's work. I think that would provide much more potential. Also, it will not have a schedule. Kinda like my Armoureux de Rosé fic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reboot will begin somewhere in March as I originally planned to begin the next chapter for this work.
> 
> (Rumbellestiltskin, if you ever read this, just know that I'm especially sorry to you. Love your work, love you, and I hope you have a good day!)


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